The Woman Out Of Time: 1861
by 100-percent-not-a-Muggle
Summary: Finally, it seems that Steve and Lowri might have that normal life that has always been in the distant future but as usual, life gets in the way as their own civil war almost tears them apart. Throw in a few surprises along the way as well as old and new friends, it almost seems normal. Follow her on her story through the years. *Fifth in a series* *Please read others in series*
1. Chapter 1

**Welcome all to my new story: The Woman Out Of Time: 1861 - If anyone can guess the meaning of this four number word, then you're pretty good.**

**I do apologise in the gap between the two stories, I have been vesy busy these last few weeks!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

Lowri and Steve stood alone in the modest sized hideaway that Tony had gifted to her upon his retirement. They were stood close together in front of the large wooden desk in the centre of the room which held the final plans for their mission in the morning.

"Are you definitely sure that Rumlow is hitting this town?" Lowri asked, her eyes scanned over the documents quickly and she bit down on her bottom lip. "The town is so small and it just seems pointless to me to hit such a small PD."

Steve looked down at her and smiled, she caught the smile and released her bottom lip.

"I'm sure." Steve insisted. He looked away from the map of the small town and locked eyes with Lowri. "All the intel we gathered over the past few months points to this. A small PD. He wants to exploit the police department and steal their weapons. It's what he always does."

"But their weapon store is gonna be tiny. If I were Rumlow, I wouldn't bother hitting such a small PD. Their defence may be down, but it's not worth it." Lowri said.

"Rumlow has his own mindset. But I'm sure that this is the place he's gonna be tomorrow. I'm sure of it, Ri." Steve replied. "Who knows what the guy is planning, but we gotta stop him and this might be our last chance."

"We're not gonna lose him, Steve." Lowri said with a small smile.

"Good. We've been chasing his tail for the last six months, he's been slipping in and out, and I want this to be done." Steve said firmly. He stepped away from the table and turned around, he leant back against the table and crossed his arms over his chest. "I never knew that Howard had his own secret room."

Lowri turned around and leant back against the table, she placed her hands on either side of her body and looked around the secret room too.

"It was Howard's way of hiding from the world." Lowri said, "He had the bar well-stocked, a really comfy couch and the best music going. When all the staff were gone, I would leave my own hideaway and come here with him before he left to go home to Maria."

"Why did he have this place built? Didn't he already have his office with a bar?" Steve asked, looking at her.

"Because it was a place for him to hideaway when things got crazy. His office was open to everyone, this place, only him and me knew about it." Lowri explained. "Plus, I was behind his office so he never really got an escape from me."

"I bet he needed to hide away a lot." Steve chuckled. Lowri laughed and shook her head at him.

"I was a lovely guest." Lowri said with a laugh, she yawned and stretched out her arms in front of her.

"Do you wanna turn in for the night? I mean, we've got a big day ahead of us tomorrow and it's already gone nine." Steve said, he checked his watch and then looked at her.

"That's not exactly late, is it?" Lowri asked with a chuckle, "Your grandfatherness is showing, Steve."

"Hey. That was uncalled for." Steve said, "Anyway, how long have you been awake for?"

"Uh, what time did you wake me up yesterday morning?" Lowri asked, she tilted her head to the side and looked up at him.

"Yesterday morning?" Steve asked loudly. "For our run? You've been awake since we went for our run?"

"Yes." Lowri replied. Steve shook his head at her and looked as though he was amused.

"What have you been doing all day today and yesterday?" Steve asked.

"Well, we had that run. I had a few calls to make so I locked myself down here. I was on the phone for most of the day, luckily, I keep some snacks down here, plus alcohol does really good too. After the calls, I had some paperwork to do. Then suddenly it was morning. I went back to my room, I took a shower and then I helped Wanda." Lowri looked up at Steve, "She's improving."

As Lowri spoke, she began pulling all the mission documents towards her and she had been putting them all in order.

"Well, I think it's time you went to bed." Steve said, he took the papers from her hands and tossed them onto the table, he reached for her hands and pulled her closer to him, he twisted so he was leaning back against the table and she was pressed flush against him.

Lowri let out a laugh and leant against him almost fully.

"Besides, I can't leave here without you." Steve said as he raised one of her hands to his lips and he kissed it gently.

"Why? Do you not want to part with me yet?" Lowri teased, she looked up at him with playful eyes, her tiredness forgotten.

"I can't open the door." Steve said, Lowri let out another laugh and Steve smiled at her.

"I better release you, then." Lowri laughed, she pulled back but kept hold of one of his hands and walked to the door, they left and they headed back to her room, as they usually do.

The walk back wasn't silent, they joked and talked the way back and when they got to her rooms, they grabbed a beer each and sat down on the couch, facing the window overlooking the lit-up grounds.

They talked and talked for a few hours before Steve insisted that they go to bed.

"I really think we should get to bed, it's a long day tomorrow." Steve pointed out. "Beers don't help, either." He added, looking at the empty bottles lined up on the table in front of them.

"But beers are fun." Lowri said, "And I'm not even tired."

"Well, you need to get to bed. I'm not letting you sleep on the couch again." Steve said with a laugh.

"I can think of better activities to do in bed other than sleep." Lowri said, she looked over at Steve and she smiled when she saw the emotions cross his face. He had wide, questioning eyes. Did he want this?

Lowri put her bottle of beer to the side and she turned back to Steve, slowly, he put his bottle to the side and looked at her. He watched Lowri as she turned to face him and then in one swift moment, Lowri was on her knees beside him and she kissed him. Steve's hands went to her waist and he pulled her onto his lap as he kissed her back.

His hands reached under her shirt and her hands fumbled with the buttons on his shirt, she moved her kisses along his jaw and down the side of his throat. He let out a throaty chuckle and Lowri kissed slightly harder.

She liked the feeling of his hands on her bare skin and she wanted more, she got the buttons of his shirt mostly unbuttoned and she ran her hands over his chest, her mind went back to 1942 when she had first seen him shirtless and she remembered how badly she wanted to run her hands over his chest then.

Steve's grip on her tightened and he breathed out her name with urgency.

"Lowri." She pulled back and looked at him. His eyes were pleading with her. "Do you wanna take this to the bedroom?"

"That's exactly what I want." Lowri replied in a breathy voice. She pressed her lips to his again and slowly, Steve stood up with her on his lap.

"Are you sure you want this, Ri?" Steve asked, he might have been asking the question but it was clear that he really wanted this too. "We can wait."

"We've waited for more than seventy years." Lowri said, she leant back slightly in his arms and looked him in the eyes. "I'm not waiting a day longer."

Finally, she and Steve would consummate their love. Finally, she and Steve would be together as a couple who love each other dearly and truly.

Lowri felt at ease with the world as she fell asleep in Steve's arms, much like she has done so before, but this time was different. This time, she was naked, filled with content and satisfaction, filled with love and passion, filled with yearning and need, filled with knowledge that she and Steve had consummated their odd relationship.

When she woke in the morning, she was pleased to see that the night before hadn't been a dream. She sat up slowly, as if not to disturb Steve. She reached for one of the old shirts she wears to bed and then she looked down at Steve.

He lay on his back with one arm spread out to the side, where she had rested, and the other rested on his toned stomach. The bedsheets were bunched at his hips, leaving not a lot to imagination.

A smile came onto Lowri's face as she remembered certain parts of the previous night, the joy she gave him, the joy he gave her. It had been earthshattering.

She turned in bed towards him and pressed against his long body again, she wriggled so she was face to face with him and as she moved, his arm moved to wrap around her shoulders familiarly.

"Hey, we gotta wake up." Lowri whispered. It was still dark outside but judging by the clock beside the bed, it was time to get ready. "Come on, wake up."

Steve's eyes opened slowly and first of all, he looked up at the ceiling and then he turned his head and his eyes locked with hers.

"Hey." Steve said slowly. "Did last night really happen?"

"Hell yeah." Lowri breathed out, she couldn't keep the grin off her face as she rolled onto her back and Steve sat up slowly, "I don't wanna get up."

"We don't have to if you don't want to." Steve said, he smiled as he looked down at her.

"I think you're forgetting something important." Lowri said, she sat up and looked at him. "The mission?"

"Oh, yeah." Steve said, he pulled a face and then he groaned. "I completely forgot about the mission."

"Steve, I can't believe you." Lowri said, she tugged the sheets from around her legs and she stood up. "You've been looking forward to this mission and you forgot."

"Well, I had something interesting going on last night." Steve remarked as Lowri walked to the end of the bed.

Steve pushed the sheets away from him and tugged his trousers up.

"I'm glad to hear that." Lowri said with a smirk. "Anyway, if you wanna miss doing the walk of shame back out, you'd better get going now. We haven't got a lot of time before we need to leave."

"Are you kicking me out?" Steve asked jokingly as he got to his feet.

"Maybe." Lowri said, she headed for the bathroom, walking backwards so she could keep eye contact with Steve.

"And where do you think we're going?" Steve asked, he dropped his shirt on the bed and put his hands on his hips.

"To shower." Lowri replied, she paused in the doorway and smirked at him.

"Oh no you don't. Come here." Steve ordered with a smile on his face, Lowri gave him a look and he beckoned to her with his finger. Lowri slowly moved towards him and he reached for her. He placed his hands on her shoulders and he kissed her deeply.

She leant into the kiss and wrapped her arms around his waist, his hands moved down from her shoulders and down her back, coming to a rest in the small of her back and she pulled back and grinned at him.

"Now, I'm going to shower. I'll see you down in the briefing room." Lowri said with a smile, Steve stepped back and released his hold on her. Lowri headed into the bathroom with her lips still tingling from the kiss.

Lowri found it hard to keep the smile off her face as she showered, dried off and dressed in a pair of light blue jeans, pale red t-shirt, a pair of old combat boots and she tied her hair back into a loose plait. She had a tough green jacket ready to wear and she left her room.

On her way down to the briefing room, Lowri remembered the mission documents that they had left down in the secret room, so she diverted to the hideaway and she grabbed the paperwork.

Down in the briefing room, Steve had already started the first briefing. Lowri slipped in from the back and put the paperwork down on the table before escaping the room again and going down to the kitchen.

She grabbed some food and a thermos full of tea and headed back to the briefing room as Steve dismissed the brief.

It was time to load the jet and get into the air, Lowri handed over some of her breakfast to Steve, knowing full well that Steve hadn't had time to get breakfast.

Nat eyed Lowri carefully but Nat didn't say anything. It was clear that Nat did want to say something but she would wait until she and Lowri were alone.

With the jet loaded up and everyone belted in at the back, Lowri was at the controls and Nat was her co-pilot. True enough, Nat waited until the jet was in the air and already cruising towards their destination, Lagos, before turning to Lowri with that look in her eye.

With a sigh, Lowri switched on auto-pilot and turned to Nat. Nat disabled her comms and gestured for Lowri to do the same, once that was done, they were free to talk in low tones.

"So, something is different in Steve." Nat said, "He's smiling. And he hasn't stopped smiling since this morning."

"So? Steve's a happy person. He's allowed to smile, isn't he?" Lowri asked.

"Yes. But this is a different smile." Nat said firmly. "Have you and the old man finally got down to do the dirty?"

Lowri let out a laugh and looked out at the skies in front of them.

"Is that what you kids call it now?" Lowri asked.

"You did the dirty." Nat said slowly. "Oh, I gotta call Clint. We've had a bet on for years."

"Why am I not surprised?" Lowri asked with a laugh. "Who won?"

"I did." Nat said with a grin.

"Well, keep your mouth shut about it, Nat." Lowri said, keeping the smile on her face, "Steve and I don't want everyone to know."

"But it's such big news. We've all been waiting for the day that one of you finally made a move." Nat teased her.

"It's not big news." Lowri said, she rolled her eyes. "Yes, Steve and I slept together. But we've slept in the same bed plenty of times. Besides, it's been well over seventy years. Can we have our peace?"

"Hell no." Nat said with a grin.

"I'm not going to hear the end of this, am I?" Lowri asked with a smile on her face.

Lowri switched the auto-pilot off and took control of the jet once more. That was the last she and Nat talked about Lowri's relationship with Steve that day.

The jet had been upgraded again and thanks to these upgrades, courtesy of Tony, the jet was able to teach long distances in less time than before. So, their journey to Lagos was quicker but it was still not fast enough for Steve.

More than four times in the length of the journey, Steve popped his head into the cockpit and asked whether they were close or not.

By the fifth time, Nat was ticked.

"Are we any closer?" Steve asked, popping his head into the cockpit again.

"You're really getting on my nerves now, Rogers." Nat snapped. "Yes, we're nearing the damn city."

Steve stepped into the cockpit fully and rolled his eyes at her as he leant against the doorway and crossed his arms over his chest.

"What do you say, Ri? You don't seem angry with me." Steve asked, smiling down at her.

"And for good reason." Nat muttered under her breath.

"We're about ten minutes out. You can start your final brief." Lowri said with a smile, she caught sight of Nat's smirk and she looked at her. "And you should go back there and listen."

"So should you." Nat replied quickly, "This plane has got auto-pilot, you know."

"Ah, but I know the brief inside and out." Lowri replied with a smirk.

Steve turned away from the cockpit and called the rest of the team around him. Nat unclipped her seatbelt and got up slowly, Lowri grabbed hold of Nat's arm and brought her closer.

"Keep your mouth shut about Steve and I." Lowri warned Nat, she merely smiled before stepping out of the cockpit.

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	2. Chapter 2

**Hello all! I am so sorry for not updating sooner... I'm currently without a laptop of my own and no internet! Hopefully, I will have an update for you by next week. As my laptop has died, it also means that I have lost most of what I have written for this story. :( **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap_

_It was time to load the jet and get into the air, Lowri handed over some of her breakfast to Steve, knowing full well that Steve hadn't had time to get breakfast._

_Nat eyed Lowri carefully but Nat didn't say anything. It was clear that Nat did want to say something but she would wait until she and Lowri were alone._

_With the jet loaded up and everyone belted in at the back, Lowri was at the controls and Nat was her co-pilot. True enough, Nat waited until the jet was in the air and already cruising towards their destination, Lagos, before turning to Lowri with that look in her eye._

_With a sigh, Lowri switched on auto-pilot and turned to Nat. Nat disabled her comms and gestured for Lowri to do the same, once that was done, they were free to talk in low tones._

_"So, something is different in Steve." Nat said, "He's smiling. And he hasn't stopped smiling since this morning."_

_"So? Steve's a happy person. He's allowed to smile, isn't he?" Lowri asked._

_"Yes. But this is a different smile." Nat said firmly. "Have you and the old man finally got down to do the dirty?"_

_Lowri let out a laugh and looked out at the skies in front of them._

_"Is that what you kids call it now?" Lowri asked._

_"You did the dirty." Nat said slowly. "Oh, I gotta call Clint. We've had a bet on for years."_

_"Why am I not surprised?" Lowri asked with a laugh. "Who won?"_

_"I did." Nat said with a grin._

_"Well, keep your mouth shut about it, Nat." Lowri said, keeping the smile on her face, "Steve and I don't want everyone to know."_

_"But it's such big news. We've all been waiting for the day that one of you finally made a move." Nat teased her._

_"It's not big news." Lowri said, she rolled her eyes. "Yes, Steve and I slept together. But we've slept in the same bed plenty of times. Besides, it's been well over seventy years. Can we have our peace?"_

_"Hell no." Nat said with a grin._

_"I'm not going to hear the end of this, am I?" Lowri asked with a smile on her face._

_Lowri switched the auto-pilot off and took control of the jet once more. That was the last she and Nat talked about Lowri's relationship with Steve that day._

_The jet had been upgraded again and thanks to these upgrades, courtesy of Tony, the jet was able to teach long distances in less time than before. So, their journey to Lagos was quicker but it was still not fast enough for Steve._

_More than four times in the length of the journey, Steve popped his head into the cockpit and asked whether they were close or not._

_By the fifth time, Nat was ticked._

_"Are we any closer?" Steve asked, popping his head into the cockpit again._

_"You're really getting on my nerves now, Rogers." Nat snapped. "Yes, we're nearing the damn city."_

_Steve stepped into the cockpit fully and rolled his eyes at her as he leant against the doorway and crossed his arms over his chest._

_"What do you say, Ri? You don't seem angry with me." Steve asked, smiling down at her._

_"And for good reason." Nat muttered under her breath._

_"We're about ten minutes out. You can start your final brief." Lowri said with a smile, she caught sight of Nat's smirk and she looked at her. "And you should go back there and listen."_

_"So should you." Nat replied quickly, "This plane has got auto-pilot, you_ know."

_"Ah, but I know the brief inside and out." Lowri replied with a smirk._

_Steve turned away from the cockpit and called the rest of the team around him. Nat unclipped her seatbelt and got up slowly, Lowri grabbed hold of Nat's arm and brought her closer_.

_"Keep your mouth shut about Steve and I." Lowri warned Nat, she merely smiled before stepping out of the cockpit._

* * *

Lowri kept the jet steady and level while Steve delivered the final briefing, giving out everyone's jobs and roles, locations and the plan, and the back-up plan.

She dropped the others off and then landed the jet nearby, she made her way over to the small street which housed the small Police Department and by then, the team had split up.

Steve was going to be in a room in the hotel a street behind the street, dressed in his suit just in case the mission went upside down. He was going to be a pair of eyes on the street.

Sam was going to be the main eyes of the operation. He'd be on the highest building, in his Falcon suit. He'll only fight if needs be.

Nat, Wanda and Lowri were tasked with blending in with the tourists around them, hiding in plain sight. They were to sit on the street in the local café, sipping tea and coffee, munching on the local delights as they waited and waited.

Each of them were dressed in civilian clothes and they did blend in, granted it took Wanda a little more effort to blend but this sort of thing was second nature to Nat and Lowri.

They'd only been sat there for ten minutes before Steve began giving Wanda a lesson on espionage and looking at their surroundings.

"All right, what do you see, Wanda?" Steve asked over the comms.

"Standard beat cops. Small station. Quiet street. It's a good target." Wanda replied.

"There's an ATM on the south corner. Which means?" Steve asked. He likes to take the opportunity to teach a lesson, and now was no different.

Lowri took a sip of her tea and glanced around her as she placed her cup down on the table in front of her. The street was busy, which is good for them because it's easier to blend in but bad for them as these civilians could become obstructions if Rumlow takes the fight out onto the streets.

Just up the road from them was a deep red, top of the line, Range Rover, it had just parked up and a large man stepped out, dressed in an all-black suit, white shirt. This man opened the back door and out stepped a man of medium build, dressed in a finer suit, and another chap in an all-black suit stepped out beside him.

There were three more men sitting inside, each armed with pistols and looking stern. Lowri tore her eyes from the shiny red Range Rover and she looked down the other end of the street.

"Cameras." Wanda concluded.

"And both cross streets are one way." Steve prompted.

"So, compromised escape routes." Wanda added.

"It means that our guy doesn't care about being seen. He isn't afraid to make a mess on the way out." Steve said.

"Which means we need to think about civilian involvement and the possible outcome." Lowri added.

"Exactly. Do you see that Range Rover, Wanda?" Steve asked.

"Yeah, the red one?" Wanda asked, stirring her coffee. "It's cute."

"It's also bulletproof, which means more private security, which means more guns, which means more headaches for somebody. Probably us." Nat said quickly.

"The Range Rover might be there for a while." Lowri said, "The car pulled up a few minutes ago and you're right, Nat. Private security, though their weapons look not that good."

"You guys know I can move things with my mind, right?" Wanda asked.

"Looking over your shoulder needs to become second nature." Nat remarked.

"Anybody tell you you're a little paranoid?" Sam asked.

"Not to my face. Why? Did you hear something?" Nat asked jokingly.

"Eyes on the target, folks. This is the best lead we've had on Rumlow in six months. I don't wanna lose him." Steve warned.

"If he sees us coming, that won't be a problem. He kind of hates us." Sam added.

There was a slight pause as everyone looked around each other.

"Sam… See that garbage truck? Tag it." Steve ordered. Lowri sat up quickly and took her hand off the warm cup of tea in front of her.

"Garbage truck?" Lowri asked, "What's happening, Steve?"

"The truck is knocking things over, driving very fast and it's like the driver is drunk." Steve replied.

Lowri got to her feet and took one final sip of her tea and then brushed down her trousers before stepping off. That truck set her off.

"The truck is loaded for maximum weight. And the driver's armed." Sam said a moment later. Lowri walked past Wanda and then Nat.

"Where is the truck headed, Sam?" Lowri asked, she began walking faster.

"It's a battering ram." Nat said slowly.

"Go now. Follow Ri." Steve ordered.

"What?" Wanda asked, a hint of confusion laced her voice.

"He's not hitting the police." Steve added.

Lowri jumped onto a bench and then jumped onto one of the market carts and then climbed to the top of the cart and then threw herself into the air and let her fire take hold. She rose into the air quickly and from there, she could see the path of the garbage truck and she could analyse it.

"I think it's heading for the Institute of Infectious Diseases." Lowri said quickly, "What's there that Rumlow wants?"

"If it's something in the Institute, it can't be good." Steve said shortly.

Sam reached the Institute first and he was carrying Steve, Sam dropped Steve into the destroyed front courtyard of the Institute and began taking out Rumlow's men.

Gunshots sounded in the air around Lowri and she pressed herself to fly faster.

"Body armour, AR-15s. I make seven hostiles." Steve said, breathing heavily.

"I make five." Sam noted.

As Lowri reached the compound and she saw the wreckage inside the courtyard, she cut out of her fire and dropped into the compound, just in front of one very surprised guard. As Lowri landed, she spun on one leg and kicked the guard in the chest. She rounded on him and he swung back at her but she dodged the hit and took him out.

"Four." Lowri breathed.

A man across the courtyard shouted at her before raising his rifle and shooting. In one second, Lowri dropped to one knee and she sent up her wall of fire, reaching well over ten feet of pure fire, which stopped the bullets.

Wanda flew over the wall of fire and began working her magic, she choked the man and then tossed him up to Sam.

"Sam!" Wanda called as she threw the man upwards.

"Three." Sam said smugly as he took out another one of Rumlow's guard. "Rumlow's on the third floor." Lowri dropped her fire and got to her feet again and looked around, the rest of Rumlow's men were now hiding and regrouping.

Steve made his appearance and strode towards the three of them, now congregated in the centre of the compound.

"Wanda, just like we practised." Steve said to Wanda, Steve walked past Lowri and looked down at her with a smile on his face. "Do you wanna take on Rumlow?"

"Of course." Lowri replied.

"What about the gas?" Wanda asked.

"Get it out." Steve ordered. He jumped onto the hood of a truck and then he threw himself into the air, Wanda flung her hands out and caught him using her magic, she lifted Steve further into the air and flew him towards the window. As Steve crashed through the window, Wanda moved her hands quickly and began pulling the gas out into the air into a large bubble.

"Aren't you gonna follow the man?" Sam asked as the two of them ducked behind a jeep. Lowri glanced at Wanda, who had a shield at her back to stop bullets and she concentrated on pulling out the gas.

"He's a grown man. He can take care of himself." Lowri replied, she shrugged her shoulders before pulling out her hand guns and checked the ammo. "Besides, you know he likes to charge ahead and take out all the opposition first."

"Well, if you wait too long you might miss the fun." Sam noted with a smirk.

"True." Lowri said, she stashed her guns away again. "Cover me."

Lowri jumped up into the air and let her fire take hold. She heard gunshots but none hit her. Lowri flew through the hole in the glass window and she landed on the balls of her toes. The room was filled with swirling gas and it was hard to see anything within close proximity to her.

As the swirling gas disappeared from around her, Lowri spied the bodies of armed guards lying around her and she knew it was Steve's work.

Lowri delved deeper into the building, following the trail of armed guards and she found Steve standing in an isolated room, right in front of an open glass cabinet with a large danger sticker on the front.

She looked at him with wide eyes as curiosity took hold, Steve had the exact same look.

"Rumlow has a biological weapon." Steve said in a rushed tone, he looked around them with a panicked look in his eyes.

"I'm on it." Nat replied.

Steve and Lowri shared one last glanced before taking off at a run towards any window which would give them a view of the courtyard. Steve pulled ahead, he's always been faster than her but as she raced after him in a long corridor, a loud boom outside shook the floor they stood on.

Lowri paused for a second, looking around. She tried to peer outside but she couldn't see. She ran after Steve as he reached the balcony.

In the small car park just below them, there was one heavily armoured vehicle sat in the centre, ready to drive off.

People surrounded the vehicle, Nat was one of them, she was sitting up and rubbing at her side.

The vehicle also had a large machine gun mounted on the top of the armoured vehicle, aimed right at them and the man behind the controls was Rumlow.

He fired the first shot at them and in a split second, Lowri reached for Steve and he yelled at her to get down but they were both too slow to avoid a hit.

Both were thrown back against the wall and they lay in the rubble for a few seconds, gathering their bearings.

Bits of concrete showered them and Lowri was sure that she had hit her head on the wall behind her and that there was blood running down the back of her neck from a cut at the base of her skull.

She blinked through the dust and spied Steve next to her, she reached across and shoved his shoulder in an attempt to get him up.

"We need to get moving." Her throat was scratchy from the dust. Lowri stumbled to her feet with Steve just behind her. He grabbed hold of her hand and pulled her with him at his speed.

Explosions followed them back down the long corridor. A mix of fear and adrenalin powered her on, though she couldn't actually die, but Steve could.

One final explosion caught them off guard as they neared the end the end of the corridor. Steve was thrown out of the window and down the long drop, Lowri was thrown against the wall, all of her breath was knocked out of her body and she blacked out as she dropped to the floor.

Lowri was surrounded in darkness for what seemed like hours, but in reality, it was seconds. Her head ached and everything she saw and heard was distorted.

"Lowri! Lowri, come in!" It was Steve's voice in her ear.

"I'm good. I'm good." Lowri said slowly, she looked around herself at the corridor, it was a bombsite. Debris was scattered everywhere and there were holes dotting the falling down walls. The window to her right was smashed completely and there was glass. Steve must have fallen through it.

"I've got the two on the left." Nat said urgently, her voice was so dim and Lowri could barely hear it over the pounding in her ears.

"They've ditched their gear. It's a shell game now. One of them has the payload." Steve breathed. Lowri was relieved to hear that Steve had made it out and was on the move.

She needed to do the same. Lowri used the wall behind her to help her stand, she found herself weak and very dizzy. She knew there was no way she could fly in her state.

Lowri stumbled her way out of the building and towards the town again, her strength slowly returned to her and by the time she actually reached the town, she was much stronger.

"He doesn't have it. I'm empty!" Sam reported.

A few seconds later, Nat reported in too.

"Payload secure. Thanks, Sam." Nat said.

"Don't thank me." Sam replied.

"I'm not thanking that thing." Nat replied firmly.

Lowri tuned out the rest of the conversation as she neared the busy town. There was a large crowd gathered near the market, and it seems to be a fist fight.

She neared and pushed her way to the front so she could see who it was and her stomach sunk when she saw it was Steve and Rumlow, who had now ditched his heavy gear and was almost bare.

Steve and Rumlow were fighting hard, almost to the death. It was looking as though Steve was losing until he swiped Rumlow's legs from underneath him and Rumlow crashed to the floor and landed on his knees, defeated and breathing heavy. He clutched his arm to his side and kept his eyes on the ground.

Lowri felt relief soar through her.

"You know, he knew you." Rumlow breathed heavily, he looked up from the floor and scrutinized Steve's face. Steve, who was hovering over Rumlow, debating whether or not to knock him out and be done with it or leave him conscious, barely glanced at Rumlow. "Your pal, your buddy, your Bucky."

As soon as Rumlow said the word Bucky, Steve had all of his attention on Rumlow and he dropped his fists, he froze.

"What did you say?" Steve asked. He grabbed Rumlow and shook his shoulders violently, it was clear his mind was on Bucky.

Lowri stepped forward into the circle and made to get closer to Steve but he sent her a warning look that made her shrink back. He's never looked at her like that before.

"He remembered you. I was there. He got all weepy about it. Till they put his brain back in the blender." Rumlow spat. "He wanted you to know something. He said to me, 'Please tell Rogers. When you gotta go… you gotta go." Rumlow breathed out the last words, as if preparing for something big.

Lowri could see the cogs working in Steve's head, wondering the same as hers, why would Bucky say that?

Rumlow made a small movement with his wrist and there was a little quiet click.

"And you're coming with me." Rumlow hissed.

Everything happened at once, before Lowri could even react, she was pushed to the side by a small woman, just as an explosion started at the centre of Rumlow's chest. Lowri saw Steve launch himself at Rumlow but suddenly, a red mist shot around Rumlow and contained the huge explosion.

Wanda stepped in front of Lowri, a look of sheer concentration on her face mixed with pain as she fought hard to keep the explosion from breaking free.

Steve looked at Wanda with worry and shock aimed at Wanda and her capabilities but Lowri knew that Wanda was already pushing herself to her limits and she might not be able to hold the explosion for longer.

"Get back! Everyone, get back!" Lowri began ordering, she managed to get mostly everyone out of the way before Wanda bent her knees and threw the ball of explosion into the air, still containing it so she could release it over the city but the ball hit the corner of a tall building about twenty stories up and it released too early with a loud boom.

Wanda collapsed to the floor, clearly exhausted and she looked up at her work with horror written in every line of her face.

The explosion had taken an entire corner of the building off and it went up a further four stories, blowing out all of the windows and making the structure of the building compromised.

Lowri looked at Wanda, torn between going up to the building and helping and going to the young girl and soothing her. Wanda had down so much more than she could handle.

Without another thought, Lowri began running towards the building and then she threw herself into the air and flew right up into the inferno going on.

"Lowri!" Steve yelled in a panicked voice but Lowri ignored him. The fire was raging through the building and all Lowri could think of was saving lives.

Fire raged on the four floors that had taken the brunt of the force and the first thing she did was stop all the fires. Everything in the four floors was scorching hot and on fire, she knew that there would be no life on these floors.

Even though it was almost impossible for her to get warm or hot at all, she could feel the heat sticking to her. She knew this was bad.

"We need evac from the upper floors. I've got the fires under control on the four impact levels and I'm going to head up and move people from the immediate explosion proximity up a few levels. We need an evac team on the north side of the building, that's where I'm moving them all to." Lowri said through comms.

"Are you alright, Ri? How's everything in there?" Steve asked hurriedly. "Fire and Rescue is already on their way."

"Good. It's a mess in here, Steve. I'm fine." Lowri replied.

* * *

**Again, I am sorry about the late update!**

**Read, Review, Follow & Favourite!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Happy Sunday all! I have two chapters to publish today, this is the first of two! I apologise for the long wait, I need to get back on track with my writing!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap_

_Everything happened at once, before Lowri could even react, she was pushed to the side by a small woman, just as an explosion started at the centre of Rumlow's chest. Lowri saw Steve launch himself at Rumlow but suddenly, a red mist shot around Rumlow and contained the huge explosion._

_Wanda stepped in front of Lowri, a look of sheer concentration on her face mixed with pain as she fought hard to keep the explosion from breaking free._

_Steve looked at Wanda with worry and shock aimed at Wanda and her capabilities but Lowri knew that Wanda was already pushing herself to her limits and she might not be able to hold the explosion for longer._

_"Get back! Everyone, get back!" Lowri began ordering, she managed to get mostly everyone out of the way before Wanda bent her knees and threw the ball of explosion into the air, still containing it so she could release it over the city but the ball hit the corner of a tall building about twenty stories up and it released too early with a loud boom._

_Wanda collapsed to the floor, clearly exhausted and she looked up at her work with horror written in every line of her face._

_The explosion had taken an entire corner of the building off and it went up a further four stories, blowing out all of the windows and making the structure of the building compromised._

_Lowri looked at Wanda, torn between going up to the building and helping and going to the young girl and soothing her. Wanda had down so much more than she could handle._

_Without another thought, Lowri began running towards the building and then she threw herself into the air and flew right up into the inferno going on._

_"Lowri!" Steve yelled in a panicked voice but Lowri ignored him. The fire was raging through the building and all Lowri could think of was saving lives._

_Fire raged on the four floors that had taken the brunt of the force and the first thing she did was stop all the fires. Everything in the four floors was scorching hot and on fire, she knew that there would be no life on these floors._

_Even though it was almost impossible for her to get warm or hot at all, she could feel the heat sticking to her. She knew this was bad._

_"We need evac from the upper floors. I've got the fires under control on the four impact levels and I'm going to head up and move people from the immediate explosion proximity up a few levels. We need an evac team on the north side of the building, that's where I'm moving them all to." Lowri said through comms._

_"Are you alright, Ri? How's everything in there?" Steve asked hurriedly. "Fire and Rescue is already on their way."_

_"Good. It's a mess in here, Steve. I'm fine." Lowri replied._

* * *

Once all of the fires were under control, she moved to the levels above the four floors and made them all evacuate the three floors just above, and to the north side of the building, just to get them away.

The building itself was at least thirty stories high and the explosion had taken place higher than half way, meaning that a different evacuation plan had to be thought out as for those already above the explosion zone had no definite escape plan.

Those on levels lower than the four floors that were taken out could use the stairs easily and they all got out in the first three hours, but the ones above the four floors taken out had to wait and wait.

Steve had tried to get Lowri to leave after a few hours, Wanda was shaken and she needed to be taken from this place, but Lowri had refused. She was deep in the rescue process, she couldn't leave now. She sent them ahead and said she'd make her own way back to the base.

It was hours before evacuation was done and everyone who was unhurt, out safe, long ladders had to be called in as well as lifts to get everyone out. When Lowri finally stepped away from the destroyed building after everyone was accounted for, she realised that she now had to find her way home.

She couldn't exactly jump on board a regular plane dressed as she was, so, she jumped into the air and flew back to the new Avengers base on her own fire and she was even more exhausted when she finally hit the gravel path leading up to the front door.

Lowri's feet dragged along the floor and her body felt as though it was weighed down with lead, her chest and throat stung with each breath she took from the smoke inhalation but that was going away slowly.

The entire building was in complete darkness and she assumed that everyone was inside and sleeping as it was so late.

The glass doors are normally automatic, but the locking system switches to manual after midnight so when she reached the doors, she keyed in her code on the little panel beside the door and then the door unlocked. Lowri pushed open the doors and stepped through, she closed the door after her and then typed in her code again, this time locking the doors.

The reception area was in complete darkness and for the first time, Lowri felt slightly scared.

She pressed the lock button on the little box beside the front door and passed through the second door, she locked down the rest of the building and she exhaled deeply as she turned from the doors, she crossed the dark reception and headed for her rooms, intending on a shower and sleep.

"I didn't want you to come home alone." The deep voice that she loves so much scared her as it echoed around the large room, Lowri turned to the voice, holding her hand to her beating chest.

"You scared me." Lowri said quietly as Steve stood from one of the couches. He looked weary and he looked tired. He had changed out of his suit and now wore a pair of dark trousers and a grey t-shirt that clung to him. His eyes looked at her worriedly but as he neared her, his expression changed to relief.

"Lowri, are you okay?" Steve asked, he reached for her with both off his hands and a small smile came onto Lowri's face as his arms went around her shoulders. She rested her head against his chest and wrapped her arms around his waist, they held each other in a tight embrace.

"I'm fine." Lowri said quietly, her voice was hoarse and she felt his arms tighten around her slightly. "How is Wanda?"

"Shaken up." Steve answered, "She feels guilty and whatever I say to her, well… it doesn't help." Steve added, he looked down at her with a careful look in his eyes.

"I'll go and talk to her tomorrow morning." Lowri promised.

"When you turned your comms off – Lowri, please don't down that again." Steve said slowly, "You scared me when I couldn't get hold of you and when you jumped head first into that building, it could have toppled on top of you."

"What do you mean? I never turned my comms off." Lowri said slowly, she pulled back and looked up at him, he was looking down at her with a curious look.

"Didn't you hear me talk to you? Sam tried and Nat tried, we couldn't get through to you." Steve asked but Lowri shook her head.

"No, I didn't hear you, or anyone else try to get hold of me." Lowri said slowly, "Anyway, I couldn't have left so soon after, I had to help. There was so much fire."

"I know." Steve said gently, he pulled her back into his arms tightly and he rubbed her back comfortingly.

"It took me back." Lowri said quietly.

"Took you back where?" Steve asked.

"The war." Lowri said, Steve move his hands to her shoulders and pushed her back slowly, he looked down at her with concern in his eyes.

"The war was a long time ago." Steve said slowly.

"Yes, but the memories are still as clear. And you forget, I've been through both of the World Wars and many of the smaller wars." Lowri said, "You might recall me saying that I flew in the Battle of Britain in 1940. And I might have mentioned the Blitz."

"I think you did." Steve said gently.

"For a long time, the Germans bombed London and other big cities in an attempt to break our spirit. The bombs killed people, destroyed homes and destroyed the landscape. Back then, I couldn't do what I did today. When that explosion hit the building, for a moment I was taken back to 1940 when I was wearing that silly uniform and I couldn't do anything." Lowri said.

She dropped her eye to the floor and she was scared that tears were going to start pouring down her cheeks, the day was already tiring, she doesn't need to start re-living the exhausting life of Elizabeth Jones.

"Can we go to bed?" Lowri asked in a weak voice.

"Sure." Steve said quietly. They walked up to Lowri's room in comfortable silence and as they reached her door, Steve paused.

"Aren't you coming in?" Lowri asked.

A smile came onto Steve's face as he stepped over the threshold with her and closed the door behind him.

"Have you eaten?" Lowri asked as she moved to the kitchen straightaway.

"Yeah. I had something earlier." Steve said, he followed her into the kitchen and leant on the island just outside her kitchen. "Look, I'll make you something. You go shower and change out of that suit."

Lowri looked back at Steve, her hand on one of her cupboards and she smiled at him, she walked out of the kitchen and up to him.

"Are you sure?" Lowri asked, looking up at him. She came to a stop just in front of him.

"Yeah." Steve said firmly.

"Thank you." Lowri said, she went onto her tiptoes and pressed a kiss to his cheek and she left him smiling.

She headed upstairs and she went into the bathroom to shower and wash the day's activities from her before dressing in a long-sleeved shirt and a pair of loose trousers.

Steve was already in her bedroom with a sandwich ready for her. They chatted before they put the plate to the side and climbed into bed together, this time, they slept.

The next day when Lowri woke, Steve was already gone. He was probably out running or something. Lowri got out of bed and dressed, she went down to the kitchen and made two cups of tea and she went to Wanda's room.

Wanda was lying on her side at the top of her bed, hugging one of her pillows to her chest with silent tears staining the pillow. At least Wanda had got dressed first.

Anything Lowri said was ignored by Wanda and it was clear that Wanda was deep in her own guilt and shock. Lowri left the room with a sinking feeling in her stomach.

She met Steve in the kitchen, he was dressed in his running gear and he was drinking a glass of water. He looked up as Lowri entered the kitchen and she went straight to the sink beside him to tip the contents of Wanda's cup down the drain.

"She's in shock." Lowri said slowly, she turned and looked up at Steve. "She's in shock and we can't help her."

"There's not a lot we can do." Steve agreed. "She'll have to heal by herself."

"She feels guilty because her powers are still untested and at that time, she was pushing herself too hard and it blindsided her." Lowri said slowly.

From that day, Lowri made the decision not to train for any more missions as they had accomplished their ultimate goal, and because she wanted to show the world that the Avengers were respectful of what had just happened.

During this month off, it gave them loads of time to catch up on the news and so far, most news stations were covering the incident in Lagos.

Lowri never watched the news. She prefers the newspaper method but now that the news were trying their very best to belittle and damage the Avengers, Lowri leaves the room as soon as the news come on.

Steve watched the news, it's as if he wants to torture himself with the information. Even if Lowri and Steve lying in bed about to drop off and Steve turns the news on, Lowri leaves.

Wanda is another avid watcher of foreign news. She would sit at the end of her bed, curled up and keep her eyes peeled on the TV.

Ever since the incident in Lagos, the Wakandan representative Lowri had been working with suddenly stopped taking her calls and for a week or so, Lowri was confused as to why, but then she read that Wakandan individuals had been involved in the incident in Lagos and it made sense.

Soon after the Lagos incident, Lowri began to feel queasy and odd but she soon dismissed it as nothing but stress, everyone was stressed. This is a hard time.

Each day was the same, Lowri would walk past Wanda's room with a cup of tea in her hands, she would pop her head in to check on the young girl and normally see her curled up on the end of her bed, watching TV and Lowri walked past today expecting everything to be the same.

But, when Lowri walked past, she heard voices and she paused outside the door.

"I should have clocked that bomb vest long before you had to deal with it. Rumlow said 'Bucky' and all of a sudden I was a 16-year-old kid again in Brooklyn." Steve was saying. Lowri leant against the wall as he spoke, curious as to what he was going to say next. "And people died. It's on me."

"It's on both of us." Wanda added grimly.

"This job… we try to save as many lives as we can. Sometimes that doesn't mean everybody. But if we can't find a way to live with that… then next time, maybe nobody gets saved." Steve said.

There was a slight pause as the words sunk in.

"Vis!" Wanda exclaimed. "We talked about this."

"Yes, but the door was open, so I assumed that…" Vision said slowly, he trailed off and started back up again. "Captain Rogers wished to know when Mr Stark was arriving."

Lowri's eyes widened, she hadn't realised that Tony was visiting today.

"Thank you. We'll be right down." Steve said slowly.

Lowri turned from the door and stepped towards the stairs leading from the bedrooms to the main reception, where Tony was coming through the door with a smile on his face as soon as he saw Lowri.

She hurried down the stairs, hurried over to him and ducked his arms so she could place her cup of tea on the table before resurfacing and throwing her arms around him.

"Oh no, here comes trouble. Where's the cops?" Tony asked with a laugh as he hugged her back.

"I missed you, Tony." Lowri laughed, she took a step back and looked him up and down. "Looks like you've still got all your limbs. Retirement is doing you good. What're you doing here?"

"I've brought a visitor who really, _really_ wants to speak with you all." Tony said, he glanced back at the front door where the two security guards were searching some men at the doors.

Lowri looked more closely at the men and she frowned.

"Why is he here?" Lowri asked, her voice was laced with hostility.

"Oh yeah. You and him don't get along very well-" Tony began but Lowri cut him off.

"You're damn right there." Lowri snapped. "Don't you remember what he did to Bruce? Plus, my first meeting with him wasn't particularly friendly."

"You act like an unhappy child most of the time." Tony said with a smirk, "Oh yeah, I forgot. You're years older than me."

"And don't you forget it." Lowri said with a small smile.

The smile disappeared off her face as soon as Secretary Thaddeus Ross neared Lowri and Tony with two of his own men trailing behind him, hovering.

"Good afternoon, Miss Jones." Secretary Ross said, Lowri had hopes that the man had finally mellowed out. "I hope you're ready for some big news."

"Depends on what that news is." Lowri said slowly, she saw him narrow his eyes at her, as if the news he held wasn't that good at all. So, he hadn't mellowed out. "I was sorry to hear that your wife had to have surgery, I hope she's made a full recovery?"

"Oh. She's uh, she's doing well, I'll let her know that you asked after her." Secretary Ross said, he looked up at the set of stairs and then looked down at Tony. He'd hadn't counted on her remembering his wife. "I see the others are making their way down, shall we get ourselves ready?"

Tony nodded his head and dropped his arm from around Lowri's shoulder.

"We'll be up in the briefing room." Tony said to Lowri, he glanced up at the stairs where Steve, Wanda and Vision were stood, chatting.

Tony headed off with Secretary Ross and his two men following behind. Lowri saw Steve watching Secretary Ross and Tony leave the room carefully and he was the last to make his way down the stairs.

Lowri felt tense all over from meeting Ross again and it was clearly showing. Steve narrowed his eyes at her as he neared. He paused beside her while Vision and Wanda passed Lowri by wordlessly.

"Have you got beef with the Secretary of State?" Steve asked as he looked down at her.

"Once you find out what he's done to get that position you'll agree with me." Lowri replied, "And once you've been alive as long as I have and the positions I've been in, you're bound to make some enemies."

Lowri turned from Steve and picked up her tea, she turned back to Steve and stopped when she saw the look on Steve's face.

"Enemies?" He asked. "Are you stating that you're enemies with the Secretary of State?"

"Yeah." Lowri replied straightaway. "We better get in there."

She followed Steve through to the briefing room and as they came out into the large room, it was evident that they were the last to arrive.

Wanda, Vision, Sam, Nat and Rhodey were already sat at the table, all looking towards the monitor set up at the end of the table. Secretary Ross stood at the end of the table, waiting for them all to be quiet.

The two men that Secretary Ross had brought with him were stationed opposite each other, as if on guard.

Tony was stood at the back of the room beside the door, he locked eyes with Lowri as she passed by and she noticed that he looked very tired and unusually stressed.

Steve slid into the seat opposite Sam and Lowri took the seat next to Steve, she put her mug on her table and settled back in her seat with an odd feeling in her stomach.

* * *

**Thanks for reading, all!**

**Read, Review, Follow & Favourite!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Happy Sunday all! This is the second of the two chapters to be published today, I hope you enjoy them!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap_

_Lowri turned from the door and stepped towards the stairs leading from the bedrooms to the main reception, where Tony was coming through the door with a smile on his face as soon as he saw Lowri._

_She hurried down the stairs, hurried over to him and ducked his arms so she could place her cup of tea on the table before resurfacing and throwing her arms around him._

_"Oh no, here comes trouble. Where's the cops?" Tony asked with a laugh as he hugged her back._

_"I missed you, Tony." Lowri laughed, she took a step back and looked him up and down. "Looks like you've still got all your limbs. Retirement is doing you good. What're you doing here?"_

_"I've brought a visitor who really, really wants to speak with you all." Tony said, he glanced back at the front door where the two security guards were searching some men at the doors._

_Lowri looked more closely at the men and she frowned._

_"Why is he here?" Lowri asked, her voice was laced with hostility._

_"Oh yeah. You and him don't get along very well-" Tony began but Lowri cut him off._

_"You're damn right there." Lowri snapped. "Don't you remember what he did to Bruce? Plus, my first meeting with him wasn't particularly friendly."_

_"You act like an unhappy child most of the time." Tony said with a smirk, "Oh yeah, I forgot. You're years older than me."_

_"And don't you forget it." Lowri said with a small smile._

_The smile disappeared off her face as soon as Secretary Thaddeus Ross neared Lowri and Tony with two of his own men trailing behind him, hovering._

_"Good afternoon, Miss Jones." Secretary Ross said, Lowri had hopes that the man had finally mellowed out. "I hope you're ready for some big news."_

_"Depends on what that news is." Lowri said slowly, she saw him narrow his eyes at her, as if the news he held wasn't that good at all. So, he hadn't mellowed out. "I was sorry to hear that your wife had to have surgery, I hope she's made a full recovery?"_

_"Oh. She's uh, she's doing well, I'll let her know that you asked after her." Secretary Ross said, he looked up at the set of stairs and then looked down at Tony. He'd hadn't counted on her remembering his wife. "I see the others are making their way down, shall we get ourselves ready?"_

_Tony nodded his head and dropped his arm from around Lowri's shoulder._

_"We'll be up in the briefing room." Tony said to Lowri, he glanced up at the stairs where Steve, Wanda and Vision were stood, chatting._

_Tony headed off with Secretary Ross and his two men following behind. Lowri saw Steve watching Secretary Ross and Tony leave the room carefully and he was the last to make his way down the stairs._

_Lowri felt tense all over from meeting Ross again and it was clearly showing. Steve narrowed his eyes at her as he neared. He paused beside her while Vision and Wanda passed Lowri by wordlessly._

_"Have you got beef with the Secretary of State?" Steve asked as he looked down at her._

_"Once you find out what he's done to get that position you'll agree with me." Lowri replied, "And once you've been alive as long as I have and the positions I've been in, you're bound to make some enemies."_

_Lowri turned from Steve and picked up her tea, she turned back to Steve and stopped when she saw the look on Steve's face._

_"Enemies?" He asked. "Are you stating that you're enemies with the Secretary of State?"_

_"Yeah." Lowri replied straightaway. "We better get in there."_

_She followed Steve through to the briefing room and as they came out into the large room, it was evident that they were the last to arrive._

_Wanda, Vision, Sam, Nat and Rhodey were already sat at the table, all looking towards the monitor set up at the end of the table. Secretary Ross stood at the end of the table, waiting for them all to be quiet._

_The two men that Secretary Ross had brought with him were stationed opposite each other, as if on guard._

_Tony was stood at the back of the room beside the door, he locked eyes with Lowri as she passed by and she noticed that he looked very tired and unusually stressed._

_Steve slid into the seat opposite Sam and Lowri took the seat next to Steve, she put her mug on her table and settled back in her seat with an odd feeling in her stomach._

* * *

"Five years ago, I had a heart attack." Secretary Ross began with a sigh. Lowri looked up sharply, her odd feeling in her stomach forgotten. He lifted his hands into the air and mimed playing golf. "And dropped right in the middle of my backswing. It turns out it was the best round of my life because after thirteen hours of surgery and a triple bypass… I found something forty years in the Army never taught me." Secretary Ross looked around the group and his eyes lingered on Lowri. "Perspective."

Obviously, he wasn't going to mention the mess that surrounded him and Bruce Banner, that was a tiny speck on his career. Lowri shifted in her seat and turned her body away from him slightly at the mention of his army career, hiding a smile.

"The world owes the Avengers an unpayable debt. You have fought for us, protected us, risked your lives… but while a great many people see you as heroes… there are some who would prefer the word 'vigilantes'." Secretary Ross continued.

"What word would you use, Mr Secretary?" Nat asked almost coyly.

"How about dangerous?" Secretary Ross asked, he acted as though he was humouring the group instead of insulting their primary jobs.

Lowri pressed her lips together. What is this man getting at?

"What would you call a group of US based enhanced individuals who routinely ignore sovereign borders and inflict their will wherever they choose and who, frankly, seem unconcerned about that they leave behind?" Secretary Ross asked.

He stepped to the side of the monitor behind him and the monitor lit up. Images began playing on the screen, the first was of a world map with several yellow dots placed almost strategically. Two were in North America, one in South America, another in Europe, another in Africa, Australia, Russia and Asia.

Lowri quickly evaluated the map and the yellow dots. Each of the spots indicated where the Avengers had been and had caused something bad.

Secretary Ross pulled out a remote and pressed a button, the monitor zoomed in on one of the yellow dots in North America.

"New York." Secretary Ross stated as if those two words explained everything.

Images began playing on the screen of a black hole opening in the sky and aliens came flying out. This was the Battle of New York, this wasn't caused by the Avengers, but they sure as hell saved that city. All of the footage playing in front of them was obviously filmed on a phone, then the phone seemed to fall out of its owner's hands, that bystander must have been hurt at that moment.

There was footage of the Chitauri flying by, shooting their painful blue beams. Lowri shifted uncomfortably in her seat upon seeing them. She remembered the horrible pain that followed after being shot with one of those. Then, the monitor played footage of Bruce turning into the Hulk and taking down one of the huge alien monsters, destroying part of the bridge as the monster toppled from the bridge onto the street below.

But none of the footage showed Steve ordering the police force to evacuate all civilians. Or how Nat and Clint had held off a large ambush of aliens to save a bus full of school children. Or how Tony had risked his life in facing Loki, the one behind the attack, without his suit.

"Washington DC." Secretary Ross stated, naming another city that the Avengers had left their mark on.

The footage was amateur footage this time too, it showed two huge helicarriers crashing in the sky and debris raining down on the people below. There were screams of panic as another helicarrier fell directly into the Potomac, creating huge, crashing waves that rolled heavily.

Lowri inhaled sharply at the sight of the footage. She had been unconscious at this point in time and she had no idea what had actually gone on. By the time Lowri was recovered fully, there was another threat. She had not wanted to know fully what had gone down with S. H. I. E. L. D.

"Sokovia." Secretary Ross stated. The footage now showed the media coverage of what happed in that city. It showed the city rising and rising steadily, it showed the army of metal men terrorising everyone, it played the screams of the scared but it never showed the helicarrier coming to the rescue nor any of the Avengers ushering civilians onto the lifeboats with the help of the police force.

"Lagos." This was a terrible hit for the team. There was the chase that went on with want and two men, creating destruction along the market, then there was flashes of Steve's fight with Rumlow, caught on a cell phone. And then it showed the explosion. There was the injury toll and the death toll. But there was nothing on the quick reactions of Steve and Sam, they got the attention of the Fire and Rescue, nor the actions of Lowri during the long hours afterwards.

"Okay, that's enough." Steve said firmly, he leant forward slightly and pressed his open palm onto the table.

The monitor returned to the world map on command and Secretary Ross took front and centre once more.

"For the past four years you've operated with unlimited power and no supervision. That's an arrangement the governments of the world can no longer tolerate." Secretary Rose swept his eyes across the room, holding onto another dramatic pause." "But I think we have a solution."

He turned to the man on his left and the man passed over a thick book.

"The Sokovia Accords." Secretary Ross began as he placed the book onto the table and he slid it over to Wanda with a smile on his face. "Approved by one hundred and seventeen countries, it states that the Avengers shall no longer be a private organisation." The Accords was slid over by Wanda to Rhodey with a disgusted look on her face. "Instead, they'll operate under the supervision of a United Nations panel only when and if that panel deems necessary."

Lowri bit her tongue. The governments of the world were barely able to run their countries without the threat of civil war, they wouldn't have a clue on how to run the Avengers, all members unique in their own way without causing damage.

"The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place." Steve said firmly. "I feel that we've done that."

"Tell me, Captain, do you know where Thor and Banner are right now?" Secretary Ross asked, no one said anything as he walked around the table, talking as if he was questioning children. As he was opposite to Lowri, she opened her mouth.

"Banner may be AWOL but he is more than capable of controlling himself when he's surrounded by civilians, he has improved since you last encountered him." Lowri said, she enjoyed challenging Secretary Ross. His eyes swivelled to her and she continued. "And Thor has said that he's going back to Asgard to speak with his father."

"Do you have any proof of his whereabouts?" Secretary Ross asked. Lowri was unsure whether he meant Thor or Bruce, so she answered for Thor.

"Yeah, I'll just get my cell out and dial for Asgard. I'm sure that'll work." Lowri replied. It was clear that Secretary Ross didn't like that.

"If I misplaced a couple of thirty megaton nukes, you can be sure there'd be consequences. Compromise. Reassurance. That's how this world works. Believe me, this is the middle ground." Secretary Ross said, continuing as if Lowri hadn't spoken.

"Look where that got you in life." Lowri replied but he never acknowledged her words.

Ross looked away from her and she knew that he was thinking over the past.

"So, there are contingencies." Rhodey said carefully.

"Three days from now, the UN will meet in Vienna to ratify the Accords." Secretary Ross said softly. Steve turned to look at Tony. "Talk it over. Come to the meeting." He continued, Secretary Ross made a small movement with his hand and his two men jumped to attention, gathered their things and followed him towards the door.

"And what if we come to a decision that you don't like?" Nat asked, stopping Secretary Ross on his way out.

"Then you retire." Secretary Ross replied simply. He didn't even think of his answer, he knew it already. He headed for the door and left the group in silence.

No one knew what to say. It was as if the thick book in the middle of the table intimidated them into silence.

As Lowri sat there, staring at the book and half tempted to grab the book and read it from cover to cover, a strange feeling began churning in her stomach and it slowly rose upwards. It took her a few more seconds to realise that she actually felt sick, like she was actually going to be sick.

In one swift movement, Lowri pushed back her chair, got up and headed for the door at the other end of the room.

No one said anything as she left the room so abruptly.

The nearest bathroom was down that hall and she almost didn't make it, she locked the door, threw herself to the floor and ripped the toilet seat up before emptying her stomach into the toilet bowl.

She felt clammy and sweaty at the same time, she felt weak and she had to sit on the floor of the bathroom for a few minutes before she had the strength to get back onto her feet and swill her mouth out with water.

Lowri doesn't know why she felt sick so suddenly. She's been feeling fine all day and she never gets sick. She never feels like this. Not since her coma. She washed her hands and looked up at herself in the mirror. She was pale too. Odd, very odd.

As she exited the bathroom, Lowri checked her phone since someone had tried to get a hold of her while they were in that meeting, there were three missed calls from the same person. She pressed call.

"Hi there." Lowri said with a small smile as she straightened up and tried to make herself not look ill.

"You told me that if I called, you'd answer straight away. You lied to me."

"Whoa there. Someone's a little clingy." Lowri said with a laugh. The feeling of nausea passed quickly and colour returned to her cheeks. "I'm sorry. We just had a meeting with Secretary Ross."

"So, I'm guessing it went well."

Lowri smiled, this person had known Lowri a long time and he knew the origins of her disagreement with Secretary Ross.

"Well? You can say that." Lowri said, "He just dropped a bombshell on us. I'm assuming that you've heard of the Sokovia Accords? Talks have been going on for a while about something that can limit enhanced human beings?"

"I've heard something. Have they been ratified?"

"Published and everything." Lowri said with a sign. "Apparently, the world views us as dangerously enhanced individuals."

Lowri moved slowly up the corridor back to the briefing room. She desperately needed another cup of tea, since the one she had was probably cold by now, so she would need to make another one. She could hear arguing as she moved along the corridor but she couldn't distinguish voices just yet.

"Well, he's not wrong there."

"Uncalled for." Lowri replied grumpily. "I'm being serious, Ross is out for our demise."

She re-entered the room and only Steve looked up to acknowledge her. Everyone had moved from the big table and they were now seated behind the monitor on the couches and chairs, Rhodey and Sam were both on their feet, arguing.

Lowri had to walk past the lot of them to reach her lonely cup of tea, Vision and Wanda shared a couch, Tony slouched on a chair with Nat opposite him. Steve was sat just in front of Sam and Rhodey, he looked conflicted.

"You always say that."

"And it's always true. He never liked the fact that I challenged him." Lowri said, she grabbed her cup and then walked into the kitchen and dumped her cold tea into the sink. She refilled the kettle and set it on boil before swilling out her cup.

"Question, do you not agree with these Accords because Ross brought them to you or do you have a genuine reason?"

"These Accords want to limit our control over what we do and where we go and when, and if we even go. That's not how things run." Lowri said, she popped a tea bag into her tea and spooned in the sugar. "Sure, the UN has got the right idea, we need a governing body that acknowledges treaties, borders and all that just so we don't jeopardise anything but I don't like how they're going about it."

"What are your choices?"

"Sign or retire." Lowri replied. She turned around and faced the room. "I think my retirement would be the tip of the iceberg." The kettle popped behind her and Lowri turned back to finish off making her cup of tea.

"Probably. What's that noise?"

"Sam and Rhodey, arguing like children." Lowri replied as she stirred her tea. Behind her, both men fell silent and she turned and saw their hurt looks. "Oh no, I hurt their feelings."

Sam and Rhodey both shot her a glare each before returning to their argument and Lowri picked up her cup of tea. Steve looked up the Accords and closed the book. The look on his face made her stand up straight and she felt worry take hold in her stomach.

"I'll call you back." Lowri said slowly into the phone. Steve looked up at her with that conflicted look, clearly the Accords weren't looking too good for them.

"Soon. I don't like leaving you with this decision."

"I'll call you back soon." Lowri promised. She hung up and slid her phone into her pocket and she headed over to the group with her cup of tea in her hands. She walked over to Steve and sat on the arm of his chair, she placed her cup on the table in front of her and then turned her body so she could see him and smile, he smiled back but there was little happiness in his eyes.

"So, let's say we agree to this thing. How long is it gonna be before they LoJack us like a bunch of common criminals?" Sam asked.

"One hundred and seventeen countries want us to sign this. One hundred and seventeen, Sam, and you're just like, 'No, that's cool. We got it.'" Rhodey snapped.

"How long are you going to play both sides?" Sam asked.

"I have an equation." Vision said, interrupting both Sam and Rhodey. Lowri turned back to the rest of the group and looked at Vision. She reached for her cup of tea and took a sip.

"Oh, this will clear it up." Sam said sarcastically.

"In the eight years since Mr Stark announced himself as Iron Man, the number of known enhanced persons has grown exponentially. During the same period, the number of potentially world-ending events has risen at a commensurate rate." Vision said slowly.

"But not all of those events were caused by enhanced individuals." Lowri pointed out before taking another sip of her tea.

"But they are all linked." Vision replied.

"And it's only since Tony announced himself as Iron Man. Nothing like this happened back in the forties when Cap came around." Rhodey began.

"But there's all those scientists that tried to recreate the Super Soldier Serum and failed." Nat pointed out.

"And Hydra was happening with or without Steve. Hydra would have used Tesseract technology to either control the world or destroy it." Lowri added.

"Yeah, well-" Rhodey cut himself off and then looked at Lowri. "Ri's been around since the Middle Ages."

Lowri turned around, bumping knees with Steve and she shot a warning look at Rhodey.

"It was the 19th century, actually. You might wanna read a history book." Lowri remarked. "And even back then, there were still dangerous persons walking the earth, just maybe not as powerful as the threats we face today or as in your face but they were there."

"Are you saying that all of this is our fault?" Steve asked, he glanced up at Lowri as she turned back to the rest of the group. She caught his eye and he shifted one of his hands, he moved his hand from the Accords and rested the arm on the arm of the chair, just behind where Lowri was sitting. His thumb was just touching her thigh and he slowly moved his thumb up and down on her thigh, touching gently.

Lowri fought to contain the smile. They hadn't been intimate since before Lagos and she missed it.

"I'm saying there may be a causality. Our very strength invites challenge. Challenge incites conflict. And conflict breeds catastrophe. Oversight. Oversight is not an idea that can be dismissed out of hand." Vision said.

"Boom." Rhodey added.

"Tony." Nat said slowly, Lowri looked up from the table holding the Accords and looked at Tony. He had his hands covering his face and he was slouched in his seat, unusual for him. "You're being uncharacteristically non-hyperverbal."

"It's because he's already made up his mind." Steve pointed out.

"Boy, you know me so well." Tony snapped. He removed his hand from his face and sat up abruptly. "Actually, I'm nursing an electromagnetic headache." He got to his feet and headed into the kitchen. "That's what's going on, Cap. It's just pain." Tony moved through the kitchen easily, he grabbed a mug and walked to the sink. "It's a discomfort. "Who's putting coffee grounds in the disposal? Am I running a bed and breakfast for a biker gang?" Tony asked, he took a sip of his water and placed a device in the breadbasket, he turned it on and a photo of a young man was displayed.

He looked young and hopeful, but judging from Tony's look, the boy's story wasn't good.

"Oh, that's Charles Spencer, by the way. He's a great kid. Computer engineering degree, 3.6 GPA, had a floor level gig at Intel planned for the fall. But first, he wanted to put a few miles on his soul before he parked it behind a desk. See the world. Maybe a bit of service. Charlie didn't want to go to Vegas or Fort Lauderdale, which is what I would do. He didn't go to Paris or Amsterdam, which sounds fun. He decided to spend his summer building sustainable housing for the poor. Guess where. Sokovia." Tony slammed his hand on the counter. "He wanted to make a difference, I suppose. I mean we won't know because we dropped a building on him while we were kicking ass." Tony tossed a tablet into his mouth and took a deep sip of his water. He left the kitchen and headed out to the rest of the group again, "There's no decision-making process here. We need to be put in check! Whatever form that takes, I'm game. If we can't accept limitations, if we're boundary-less, we're no better than the bad guys."

"Tony, if someone dies on your watch, you don't give up." Steve said slowly.

"Who said we're giving up?" Tony asked.

"We are if we're not taking responsibility for our actions. This document just shifts the blame." Steve said.

"I'm sorry, Steve. That-that is dangerously arrogant." Rhodey said, he turned to Steve. "This is the United Nations we're talking about. It's not the World Security Council, it's not S. H. I. E. L. D., it's not Hydra."

"No, but it's run by people with agendas, and agendas change." Steve insisted.

"That's good. That's why I'm here. When I realised what my weapons were capable of in the wrong hands, I shut it down and stopped manufacturing." Tony said.

"Tony, you chose to do that. If we sign this, we surrender our right to choose. What if this panel sends us somewhere we don't think we should go? What if there is somewhere we need to go and they don't let us? We may not be perfect, but the safest hands are still our own." Steve insisted.

Lowri sipped at her tea and kept her words to herself. Both Steve and Tony were getting worked up and it never ends well. Besides, she was already planning on going to these talks about the Accords and working on them.

"If we don't do this now, it's gonna be done to us later. That's the fact. That won't be pretty." Tony said.

"You're saying they'll come for me." Wanda said slowly.

"We would protect you." Vision promised.

"Maybe Tony's right. If we have one hand on the wheel, we can still steer. If we take it off…" Nat said, she looked around the group as she trailed off to make her point.

"Aren't you the same women who told the government to kiss her ass a few years ago?" Sam asked, crossing his arms over his chest. Nat pursed her lips at this.

"I'm just reading the terrain. We have made some very public mistakes. We need to win their trust back." Nat added.

"Focus up." Tony said, he turned to Nat and drew her attention to him. "I'm sorry." He stepped closer until he came to a stop beside Lowri. "Did I just mishear you… or did you agree with me?"

Lowri's phone vibrated in her pocket and she tugged it out as Nat gave her reply. Her arm brushed Tony's leg.

'_Hi Auntie E, just to let you know that Mum passed away this morning in her sleep. I'll update you when the funeral is but it'll be in London. Can you say a few words at the funeral? Mum would have loved it. I'll call soon. Love Alice xx'_

All sound drained from Lowri's ears, she couldn't even feel Steve's thumb on her thigh. Everything was numb. All colour drained from her face as she inhaled deeply.

Peggy is dead.

Lowri got to her feet quickly, startling those around her.

"What's the matter?" Steve asked quickly, he leant forward and looked up at her with concern.

"Everything okay?" Tony asked, taking a small step towards her, looking at her with the same concern.

Everything was moving around her, she might have even been swaying on her feet.

"Yeah… no, uh, I've gotta go." Lowri mumbled, she blindly placed her cup of tea on the table and dodged the table with tears blinding her.

She left the room quickly, aiming to reach her room before she collapsed in tears but she reached the stairs leading down to the ground floor and she couldn't make it any further. She collapsed onto the third star from the bottom and pressed her hands to her face as the tears fell.

It was hard to understand, even at her age. Lowri ached all over and she was shaking.

Peggy, Lowri's closest friend is dead. She had been the last of Lowri's friends from that era to pass away and it hurt to know that part of her life is finally over.

Lowri heard footsteps coming down the stairs behind her slowly and carefully. She knew the step. She knew who it was before he spoke. He listened as Lowri sobbed for her lost friend, he took in her shaking shoulders and small form.

"Do you want to talk about anything?" Steve asked as he sat down beside her. She felt his hand on her back, gently rubbing her back.

"It's Peggy." Lowri said quietly. She lifted her head from her hands, very aware of how red her face was, how red her eyes were, but at this point in time, she didn't care. She found it hard to speak, her throat was too tight so she reached for her phone to show Steve the text.

"Is she okay? What's happened?" Steve asked. His words made more tears come to her eyes and she couldn't read the text in front of her. She passed the phone over to him and he took the phone with his free hand.

Steve read the text carefully, his hand on her back rubbed gently and then he passed the phone back to her.

She found the strength to talk and her throat was croaking.

"Peggy had two daughters, Emily and Alice. Alice is the youngest daughter and she's the only one that's kept in contact with me. Emily travels the world with her daughter." Lowri said quietly. "Alice lives in London now with her family."

Steve was silent for a few seconds, probably letting Lowri cry it out.

"Are you going?" Steve asked.

"Yes." Lowri replied immediately. "I need to say goodbye to her. I need to say goodbye to Peggy. She was the last one, Steve. Everyone else from that time is dead."

Lowri wiped at her eyes but more tears took place. She put the phone down and then looked at Steve.

"I don't want you to go alone." Steve said sincerely. "I'll be there with you."

He slid his arm around her shoulders and brought her close to him. He let her cry and cry until she had run out of tears and then they stayed in that position for a long time after. Her legs went dead and she was sure that Steve's legs had gone dead too but he never complained.

It was getting late when Steve moved his arm and Lowri looked up at him, startled. Steve didn't say anything as he slid his arm around her shoulder and his other arm under her knees, he lifted her into his arms and she rested her head on his chest as he walked them back to her room.

He didn't leave her side until the morning and she was grateful to him for it. There were bigger things going on out in the world but he didn't want her to be alone.

* * *

**Read, Review, Follow & Favourite!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm sorry for the gap between updates, these past two weeks have been abolsutely mental, but I have today and tomorrow off work, which is lush! I took part in the Race For Life yesterday and then I did a nightshift o.o it's safe to say I'm shattered! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap_

_It was hard to understand, even at her age. Lowri ached all over and she was shaking._

_Peggy, Lowri's closest friend is dead. She had been the last of Lowri's friends from that era to pass away and it hurt to know that part of her life is finally over._

_Lowri heard footsteps coming down the stairs behind her slowly and carefully. She knew the step. She knew who it was before he spoke. He listened as Lowri sobbed for her lost friend, he took in her shaking shoulders and small form._

_"Do you want to talk about anything?" Steve asked as he sat down beside her. She felt his hand on her back, gently rubbing her back._

_"It's Peggy." Lowri said quietly. She lifted her head from her hands, very aware of how red her face was, how red her eyes were, but at this point in time, she didn't care. She found it hard to speak, her throat was too tight so she reached for her phone to show Steve the text._

_"Is she okay? What's happened?" Steve asked. His words made more tears come to her eyes and she couldn't read the text in front of her. She passed the phone over to him and he took the phone with his free hand._

_Steve read the text carefully, his hand on her back rubbed gently and then he passed the phone back to her._

_She found the strength to talk and her throat was croaking._

_"Peggy had two daughters, Emily and Alice. Alice is the youngest daughter and she's the only one that's kept in contact with me. Emily travels the world with her daughter." Lowri said quietly. "Alice lives in London now with her family."_

_Steve was silent for a few seconds, probably letting Lowri cry it out._

_"Are you going?" Steve asked._

_"Yes." Lowri replied immediately. "I need to say goodbye to her. I need to say goodbye to Peggy. She was the last one, Steve. Everyone else from that time is dead."_

_Lowri wiped at her eyes but more tears took place. She put the phone down and then looked at Steve._

_"I don't want you to go alone." Steve said sincerely. "I'll be there with you."_

_He slid his arm around her shoulders and brought her close to him. He let her cry and cry until she had run out of tears and then they stayed in that position for a long time after. Her legs went dead and she was sure that Steve's legs had gone dead too but he never complained._

_It was getting late when Steve moved his arm and Lowri looked up at him, startled. Steve didn't say anything as he slid his arm around her shoulder and his other arm under her knees, he lifted her into his arms and she rested her head on his chest as he walked them back to her room._

_He didn't leave her side until the morning and she was grateful to him for it. There were bigger things going on out in the world but he didn't want her to be alone._

* * *

The next morning, Lowri woke up feeling slightly numb but she didn't start crying so that's a good thing. Her eyes were still red and sore so she splashed her face with cold water.

Steve must have told the others about her situation, they were all careful to avoid her eyes and offer small and sympathetic smiles.

Lowri silently made herself two pieces of toast and a cup of tea, she sat down at the island alone and tried to eat the toast. She had no appetite at all.

"Are you okay, Ri?" Nat asked as she took a seat beside Lowri at the island with a bowl of cereal and they bumped shoulders. "You're not eating."

"I'm a little tired but I'm okay." Lowri replied, she attempted a smile but they both knew she wasn't up to it.

"Steve told us about what happened yesterday. I'm sorry, Ri. I know she was a good friend." Nat said.

"Thank you, Nat." Lowri said, smiling a sat smile and her eyes watered.

"Did Steve stay with you last night?" Nat asked.

"He carried me to bed." Lowri said, "I cried for hours yesterday, down on the stairs and he stayed with me. He carried me to bed and stayed with me because he didn't want me to be alone."

Lowri pushed away the one slice of toast she couldn't eat and she glanced up at Nat.

"I'm not hungry." Lowri said simply.

"I don't want you to waste away again." Nat warned her.

"I promise I won't waste away." Lowri said firmly with a hint of a smile.

She was left alone that day, and she spent the time alone. She walked in the gardens and she gave herself the day to grieve as was her way of dealing with death. The next day was still the same, she felt the exact same, she wasn't over Peggy's death. She still felt sick, which is definitely odd, two times on the first day Lowri had to stop and throw up into some bushes.

Lowri spent the day outside again and on her way back to the facility, her phone buzzed in her pocket and Lowri pulled he phone out before she went inside. Instead, she turned and faced away from the building.

"Hello?" Lowri answered the phone as she turned away.

"Aunty E, it's only me." Lowri smiled gently as more tears came to her eyes.

"Oh, Alice." Lowri said, "It's good to hear your voice again. I want to tell you now that I am so sorry about your mother."

"Aunty E, she was your friend first. I never forget that." Alice said softly. "I just wanted to chat with you."

Lowri and Alice spoke for some time about the funeral arrangements as Alice wanted to have Lowri's input.

"Oh, before I forget, I was wondering if I could bring a plus one with me." Lowri said slowly. She had made another round of the grounds before slowly approaching the building and making her way up to the communal kitchen with big windows that overlooked the grounds.

"Of course you can, you know there's plenty of room in the house." Alice replied, "Is it someone who Mum knew?"

"Yes. We both knew her during the war. But, we can't stay for long. On the day of the funeral, there's a fair bit of work to do over here regarding the incident in Lagos and there's a meeting in Vienna about it on the day of the funeral." Lowri said.

"Alexander and I saw the news. My heart was in my mouth when they mentioned your name." Alice said, "We all think that you're a hero, Aunty E. Lauren and Abigail think you're amazing."

"Thank you, Alice." Lowri said, "I only try to do what's right."

"You really don't change, do you Aunty E?" Alice asked with a small chuckle.

"No, I really don't." Lowri replied with a laugh. "How about this, we come over the day before the funeral so we can spend the night with you?"

"That sounds good, Aunty E." Alice said, "I'll let you know the details closer to the date and I hope to see you soon."

"Me too, Alice." Lowri said, she looked down at her feet. "Give my love to Alexander and your girls."

Lowri and Alice hung up and Lowri slid her phone into her pocket. Lowri turned from the window and looked at the room, she spied Steve standing in the doorway, leaning against the doorframes with his arms crossed across his chest and he was watching her.

Lowri slid her phone away and she smiled a small smile at Steve as he stepped further into the room.

"We've been invited to stay at Alice's overnight." Lowri said, "She would want us to stay a bit longer with her but I don't think that's practical with all of this that's going on."

"So, when do we leave?" Steve asked, he stepped closer to her and reached for her hand slowly.

"Tonight." Lowri breathed, "Our plane is leaving tonight, if we can book one. Hopefully, we'll get to London tomorrow morning and we have the whole day in London."

"At least Peggy gets to go home to her country and to be buried with honours." Steve said.

"Yes. And I think they're bringing her husband's ashes with her and he's being buried with her." Lowri said as she nodded her head.

"That's a nice thing to do." Steve said quietly. He came to a stop just before her and looked down at her. "How are you feeling?"

"Uh, hurting on the inside." Lowri admitted, she brushed back her hair and looked up at him. "But, I'm fine. I've done this loads of times."

"And that sucks." Steve said as he slid his hand into his pockets. "I guess I should pack."

"Yes, you'd best. Make sure you pack a nice suit." Lowri said almost teasingly.

"All my suits are nice." Steve replied instantly, a hint of a smile on his face.

He walked off, leaving Lowri alone once more. Her phone didn't ring again all day and she was just happy to lock herself into her room to pack and rest.

She booked two seats on a commercial flight to London Heathrow for that night as Lowri didn't want to use the quin jet for this. She booked a taxi too for the trip to the airport.

All too soon, they were sitting on a commercial flight heading to London, already in mid-air.

Steve had the window seat but he was sat bolt upright and staring straight ahead of him.

"Don't tell me that you're scared to fly on this huge flying contraption?" Lowri asked, leaning towards him.

"No, I'm not." Steve said sharply, he looked at Lowri and gave her a nervous smile. "But I think planes were comfier and spacious back then, don't you?"

"Comfier? No way, planes are much comfier now. But spacious I agree with." Lowri said, he was referring to their shared plane journey from Italy to London. "Flying has been commercialised as you know, things do get a bit more cramped." She lifted the arm rest that was between them. "Better?"

"Much better." Steve grinned as he shuffled closer to her, his arm bumped hers and then he moved so his arm draped around her shoulders and she leant into him.

"Good." Lowri said as she snuggled in closer to him. She let herself relax. "I'm so glad that we finally got past everything."

"Me too, God, it took us a long time to get our heads around it, didn't it?" Steve asked as his arm tightened around her shoulders slightly.

"Yeah, but I think it's finally time that we took our own destiny in our own hands." Lowri said, she leant her head onto his shoulder. "Like I told you to do seventy years ago."

She let her eyes flutter shut and she dozed throughout the entire flight, she did wake up for food but then she went back to sleep.

Just before the wheels touched down on English tarmac, Steve shook her shoulder and she woke with the jolt of the plane touching down.

She looked up at him through tired eyes and saw that he looked just as groggy as she felt, but his smile warmed her, as always. She stretched out her limbs and yawned.

"Good sleep?" Steve asked with a knowing smile.

"Lush. I think sleeping on planes is my second favourite way to sleep." Lowri admitted. "What about you?"

"Ah. I didn't sleep at all." Steve said, he had a sleepy look about him and she knew he was lying. "I'm not like you, I can't sleep on planes."

"Are you sure?" Lowri asked, she looked up at him with a smile on her face. "You look like you're ready to fall back asleep."

Steve rolled his eyes at her but his smile gave him away. Lowri leant across him to reach the closed window and she placed her hand on his thigh to balance her as she reached with the other hand to slide the window cover up. Steve's hand went on top of hers and while he couldn't see her face, she smiled softly and close her eyes against the sunlight streaming through.

She opened her eyes and scanned the runway and she felt his grip on her tighten slightly.

"Is it strange to come back?" Steve asked slowly.

"A little." Lowri replied. "I haven't been back for years, maybe a decade or two. I wonder how much the city has changed since I was last here."

Lowri leant back in her seat but he kept a hold of her hand. The jet taxied down the runway slowly as the captain gave his de-brief to the passengers about the country. When it came to a stop, Lowri got to her feet first and reached to the overhead storage to get their bags out but Steve's hands pushed hers away and she scowled at him.

"I can reach." She protested as she stepped out into the aisle so he could get the bags easily.

"I know." Steve said, tugging out her small bag, he passed it over to her with a knowing smile on his face. "But I like to help you and you don't like taking help."

He took hold of his own bag, closed the overhead storage and turned to look at her.

"Are you gonna stand there all day gawping at me?" He asked teasingly. Lowri turned on her heels and quickly followed the rest of the passengers out of the plane and down the long hall leading to the terminal.

Steve followed her closely.

"Where in London does Alice live?" Steve asked as he walked behind her.

"Not exactly in the city but almost on the outskirts. We'll need to get a taxi to get there, but I booked one ahead and they'll be waiting for us outside, we don't need to faff around with the huge line." Lowri replied, they bypassed the luggage collection and headed straight out the doors of Heathrow airport.

Their taxi was waiting for them in the taxi rink but the driver was waiting outside holding a bit of paper up with Lowri's name on it, Lowri and Steve walked right past the huge taxi line and got into their own car.

In less than twenty minutes, they were in London and fast approaching the little neighbourhood where Alice lived with her husband and two daughters.

The taxi had to drive through part of the city before heading around it and pulling into the neighbourhood. The taxi pulled up at the end of a long street but it was blocked off and there was no road.

Lowri handed over the money for the taxi ride and they quickly got out, the taxi drove off and Steve looked down at Lowri.

"This is where you lived during the war." Steve said slowly.

"Yes. When I changed identities after the war, I gave the house to Peggy. Her daughter lives in that house." Lowri explained as they started walking towards the house.

"Lowri, are you going to the Accords meeting tomorrow?" Steve asked slowly. He looked down at his feet and didn't look at her.

"I don't know." Lowri breathed out, she looked ahead of her. "Maybe. I know Nat is going. I just can't ignore the issue, it doesn't matter what day it falls on, it needs to be addressed."

"Well, you know how I view on the matter." Steve said in a low tone.

"Yes." Lowri said firmly, she turned her head to look at him. "But you don't know how _I _view on the matter, do you?"

Steve quickly looked at her sharply with wide eyes, as if that thought had never occurred to him before. He had not once asked about Lowri's opinion on it.

"What do you think about the Accords?" Steve asked slowly.

"I agree with what our government is saying, but only partly though. I can see that they're heading the right way by wanting to monitor our behaviour out in the world, and given recent events, it's what's needed. If we are solely in charge of a mission, the planning and executing, then we might miss out on something really important and terrible things could happen."

Steve was silent but he watched her as they walked.

"Like our missions overseas, we might be crossing borders that have treaties in place, we could ruin years of work because of our ignorance. But, I do disagree with them telling us which mission takes priority over others and whether or not we are needed for a mission or not."

"So you want to sign?" Steve asked after a few seconds of silence.

"I want to collaborate with the minds behind the Accords." Lowri began, "I'm hoping that if I go tomorrow, I may have a chance at speaking with some of them to work out the kinks in the Accords, so I can make it better for the Avengers and not just a two way street where it's sign or retire."

"I don't want you to go." Steve said slowly and quietly.

"What?" Lowri asked, she looked up at him.

"It's so soon after Peggy and I don't want you to be alone there." Steve said hastily.

"I won't be alone, Steve." Lowri said slowly. "Nat will be there and I'm sure Tony will show his face at one point."

"It just doesn't feel right for you to go without me." Steve said stubbornly.

"You know that you're not excluded from these talks, right?" Lowri asked, "You are more than welcome to come."

Steve simply shook his head. By now, they were approaching the familiar house, even though all the houses still looked almost exactly the same as they did seventy years ago.

Lowri now felt a tiredness weigh on her, her feet were dragging and the bag on her shoulders weighed heavily. With one glance at Steve, she knew he was feeling tired too but he was putting a good show on for her.

They finally came upon the old house, it had a fresh coat of brightly coloured paint, there were flowers hanging from every window and the huge wooden door had flowers on the ground beside it.

"Is anyone home?" Steve asked as he and Lowri stepped through the small wooden gate, they headed up the steps and stopped just outside the front door, he knocked the huge knocker on the door and stepped back.

"Alice should be here." Lowri said, she bit down on her bottom lip as she took a small step back and tilted her head up at the house to look for lights in the windows but there was none. "She said that she would be in all day in case of a hold up at the airport."

"Would she be in work?" Steve asked, he glanced down at his watch and then he frowned. "Damn it, I'm still on New York time."

He pulled his watch off his wrist and began fiddling with it, the frown still on his face.

"She works, but she said that she booked the day off." Lowri said, she looked up at Steve and she realised she had no back up plan in the case of Alice not turning up. Would they sit on the steps and wait all day?

* * *

**Thank you all for reading, hope you enjoy!**

**Read, Review, Follow & Favourite!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap_

_"I don't want you to go." Steve said slowly and quietly._

_"What?" Lowri asked, she looked up at him._

_"It's so soon after Peggy and I don't want you to be alone there." Steve said hastily._

_"I won't be alone, Steve." Lowri said slowly. "Nat will be there and I'm sure Tony will show his face at one point."_

_"It just doesn't feel right for you to go without me." Steve said stubbornly._

_"You know that you're not excluded from these talks, right?" Lowri asked, "You are more than welcome to come."_

_Steve simply shook his head. By now, they were approaching the familiar house, even though all the houses still looked almost exactly the same as they did seventy years ago._

_Lowri now felt a tiredness weigh on her, her feet were dragging and the bag on her shoulders weighed heavily. With one glance at Steve, she knew he was feeling tired too but he was putting a good show on for her._

_They finally came upon the old house, it had a fresh coat of brightly coloured paint, there were flowers hanging from every window and the huge wooden door had flowers on the ground beside it._

_"Is anyone home?" Steve asked as he and Lowri stepped through the small wooden gate, they headed up the steps and stopped just outside the front door, he knocked the huge knocker on the door and stepped back._

_"Alice should be here." Lowri said, she bit down on her bottom lip as she took a small step back and tilted her head up at the house to look for lights in the windows but there was none. "She said that she would be in all day in case of a hold up at the airport."_

_"Would she be in work?" Steve asked, he glanced down at his watch and then he frowned. "Damn it, I'm still on New York time."_

_He pulled his watch off his wrist and began fiddling with it, the frown still on his face._

_"She works, but she said that she booked the day off." Lowri said, she looked up at Steve and she realised she had no back up plan in the case of Alice not turning up. Would they sit on the steps and wait all day?_

* * *

"Oh my gosh! You're here!" A woman's voice sounded from halfway down the street, making both Steve and Lowri to turn sharply and look at the woman. "You're early!" She added, she was out of breath and she slowed down to a walk as she approached the house.

Lowri had not seen Alice in years, maybe not since she was in her late teenage years. She had similar short brown hair to Peggy, the same nose, the same eyes, the same cheekbones.

"I am so sorry that I'm late. I was dropping the girls off at school and one of the other mums cornered me about this silly event she's planning for the school and I simply couldn't get away." Alice breathed out, she came to a stop just inside the gate, breathing heavily but smiling at the same time. Her eyes travelled up to Lowri and the smile widened.

"You look exactly the same." Alice stated.

"And you've grown up. Lowri said with a smile on her feet, she dropped her bag at her feet, walked down the steps and threw her arms around Alice and hugged her tightly. "God, you have grown."

"I swear I was eighteen when I last saw you." Alice said with a laugh as she hugged Lowri back.

"And now you've got your own girls." Lowri said, she took a step back from Alice and smiled at her. Then, she remembered Steve, standing awkwardly on top of the steps, watching them. "Oh, Alice, this is Steve, the friend I told you about." Lowri offered a small smile to Steve and then looked at Alice. "And Steve, this is Alice."

Lowri watched Alice's face change to shock.

"You never said your friend was Captain America." Alice gasped. She looked up at Steve with a shocked look on her face.

"Well, yeah," Lowri said with a knowing smile. "Your mum and I served with him back in the day."

Alice shrugged her shoulders at Lowri and then it was as though something dawned on her.

"Oh, where are my manners?" Alice asked herself, she stepped up the steps, rummaging in her bag that hung from her shoulder, she pulled out a set of keys. "Come on in and warm up, I feel awful for keeping you out here in the cold."

She unlocked the door as Lowri walked up the steps, she reached for her bag but Steve beat to her to it and he plucked it from her grasp. He stood up straight with a grin on is face and they both turned to follow Alice into the house which welcomed them with warmth.

The front of the hall was a nice big size with enough room for them all to stand comfortably, one wall was lined with coat pegs and there was a big family portrait of Alice, her husband and their two girls.

"Oh, wow, you're tall." Alice breathed out as Steve passed by. Steve let out a warm chuckle and he glanced at Lowri.

"Thanks, yeah, I have been told that a few times." Steve answered with a laugh.

Lowri realised that Alice was waiting to say something, as since stepping into the hall, she had been looking down at her hands and she kept her coat on.

"Um, I've been called back into work. They wanted me in first thing this morning, but I managed to push it back so I could meet you." Alice said, "I refused my bereavement leave in work, I don't think I could stay at home just thinking about Mum. Uh, the kitchen and living room are just through that door, you're free to help yourselves to anything in the kitchen, but I have to warn you off the Hulu-Hoops in the cupboard, they're Lauren's."

"We can eat out, we don't want to be any inconvenience to you or your family." Steve said sincerely.

"No, no, no, you're not an inconvenience." Alice confirmed. "You're not putting me out at all, I always buy enough food to feed an army and my girls complain that I am trying to fatten them up. But there is no way that you two are going to pay for food in the city. The guest rooms are up in the attic, I'm sure you know the way around this house, Aunty E."

Lowri smiled at Alice.

"I hope it hasn't changed that much." Lowri said, "Go, go be busy. We'll see you when you come home later."

Alice nodded her head and opened the door again.

"There's a spare key in the dish in the kitchen if you want to go out." Alice said before she hurried out the door, it closed behind her and it was just Lowri and Steve.

"Let's head upstairs and put our things into one of the rooms." Lowri suggested. They headed through the door and turned right, they headed into a smaller hallway with stairs leading upwards.

The stairs had a rich carpet and there was arts on the walls going up and at the top of the stairs, along the walls of the landing, there were more family photos.

The attic had not been used much when the house was in Lowri's possession but now it had been converted into guest rooms.

As they headed up towards the attic, Lowri's phone began ringing in her pocket. She pulled it out as she followed Steve up.

"Someone wants to get hold of you." Steve joked as they climbed the stairs. Lowri saw the 23 missed calls and put her phone on silent.

"There's so many missed calls." Lowri said with a sigh. They reached the top of the stairs and peered around, there were three doors, one leading to a bathroom, the other two led to two bedrooms. "Now, which room should we have?"

"We?" Steve asked sharply.

"Well, yeah." Lowri said as she turned and looked up at him. "You said that you didn't want me to be alone over here."

Steve followed Lowri into the furthest bedroom away from the stairs, the room was decorated with blues and white and it was surprisingly soothing.

"Wow." Lowri said as she took her hand from the door handle and Steve stepped past her. He dropped their luggage at the end of the bed and looked around, he finally rested his eyes on her.

"Are you gonna call back whoever kept calling you?" Steve asked as she closed the door behind them. She headed for the curtain and quickly tugged them closed, then she turned to him.

"No." She replied, she put her phone on the closest bedside table to her and she shrugged her jacket off. "I'm too tired to call anyone right now. I'll call them back later."

Steve took her jacket off her and hung it up on the back of the door, he hung up his own jacket too and then turned to her with a knowing smile on his face.

"That later won't come, will it?" Steve asked he stepped closer to her.

"Probably not. I'll wait until they ring when I'm next awake." Lowri said, she sat down on the bed and let out a sigh. She kicked her shoes off and put her feet up onto the bed, she lay back against the pillows and closed her eyes.

Steve took his shoes off and turned the lamp off on his side of the room.

"Are you asleep, Ri?" Steve asked.

"Yes." Lowri mumbled into the pillow. Steve reached over her and switched the lamp on the bedside table beside her off.

She felt the bed move as Steve settled down beside her and she drifted off into sleep quickly. Lowri woke up once for a drink and she found herself pressed against Steve's chest, their legs tangled together and one of her hands on his wrist, a smile came onto her face.

She got her drink and checked the time, just past noon. She had many more missed calls but instead of calling back the caller, she put her phone down and went back to sleep.

Lowri needed some more time of being alone with Steve and resting. She takes the chance when they can as it's rare when they can actually be alone with each other.

Time passed, it could have been hours or it could have been minutes but Lowri stirred, she rolled over in bed without opening her eyes and stretched out but instead of being wrapped up with Steve, she was a lone in bed.

"Yeah, she's asleep right now." She heard a deep voice, it was Steve. Lowri felt content wrapped in the bedsheets, she didn't want to wake up. "No, I am not going to wake her. She's had a rough few days, and not including that meeting with General Ross, I don't want to disturb her." Who was he talking to? "No, Tony, don't you get it? She's got bigger things to worry about right now, one of her closest friends died two days ago and you want to talk to her about the Accords? No, I won't wake her for that. She needs to rest."

Steve was silent for a few seconds as Tony replied to what Steve had said, then Steve sighed and the bed shifted as Steve stood up. Lowri opened her eyes to find that they were still in darkness, Steve was now pacing at the side of the bed.

"Yes, I've told you, I'm not going to stop her from going to the talks, you know what she's like." Steve said with a chuckle. "She's right next to me, asleep." Lowri quickly closed her eyes as Steve looked at her. "Oh, yeah, you're hilarious, Tony. Wait, what?" Steve asked sharply. "No, no, no, Tony, no. Nothing like that happened. You know how much I respect her, you know how much I love her."

Lowri smiled to herself and peeked out at him, he had his back to her now. She guessed that Tony had suggested that she and Steve had gotten up to something.

"No, we only slept together. Nothing else." Steve insisted. At this, Lowri rolled onto her back and let out a content sigh, the bedsheets were soft and she felt relaxed. She opened both of her eyes and spied Steve standing on the side of the bed, her phone pressed to his ear and he was looking at her with a small smile on his face.

"I've gotta go, Tony." Steve said as he sat down on the bed beside her. "Alright, I'll see what I can do." Lowri sat up and patted down her hair as she watched Steve. "Bye."

Steve hung up and put her phone on her bed and smiled at her.

"Good afternoon, Sleeping Beauty." Steve said softly. "Your phone was going off, it was buzzing on the table, so, I thought I'd answer it in case it woke you."

"That's sweet." Lowri said quietly, the tiredness could be heard in her voice but she was fully rested. "What time is it?"

"About half three." Steve answered.

"Who was it?" Lowri asked, nodding her head towards the phone lying between them.

"It was Tony." Steve answered slowly.

"Was it about the Accords?" Lowri asked, she offered him a small smile. Steve nodded his head. "I'll call him back soon. I guess he really wants to talk to me."

She pushed the covers off her and she swung her legs out of bed, she stretched out her arms and let out a yawn.

"Lowri." Steve said, Lowri turned back to him and saw that he was smiling. "I love you."

Lowri raised her eyebrows and smiled widely. She has been waiting many years for him to tell her that, she had told him that she loved him way back in 1945 but she has not said it since.

"I love you too." She said softly. Steve grinned as soon as she said those words and he reached over to take her hand. "You know, I've been waiting a long time to hear you say that."

She squeezed his hand then stood up, dropping his hand in the process. She crossed to her luggage and rifled through for her shower kit.

"Too long." Steve agreed. He looked down at his hands and then looked at her. "I loved you back wen you first said it but I was in too much in shock to reply, I mean, that was a pretty good kiss."

Lowri smiled to herself.

"Well, when in the face of danger, kiss the ones you love. You might not get the chance to again and so I took the chance." Lowri said, she rose to her feet. "I'm off to have a shower. I don't want Alice thinking we're lazy bums for sleeping the day away."

"We did sleep the day away." Steve pointed out.

"Well, I don't want Alice finding out." Lowri said, she headed for the bathroom on this floor. She locked herself inside and turned the shower on before she looked for the towels, she found the towels in an old steamer trunk, as she stood with one in her arms, she felt incredibly lightheaded and she had to sit down sharply to try and stop herself from passing out.

She felt clammy all over and then she felt sick, sick to her stomach. That horrible feeling came back to her and Lowri moved as quickly as she dared before throwing up into the toilet bowl.

This was happening way too often now, it was not a one off. Lowri cannot get sick, why has she been throwing up over and over again?

Lowri got to her feet, washed at her mouth and stepped into the shower. Once out of the shower, she dressed in a pair of black jeans and grey shirt, she brushed her teeth, dried her hair and looked into the mirror.

She looked and felt exhausted, was that because she had thrown up?

When Lowri finally came out of the bathroom and headed into their room, Steve passed by her without really noticing her.

In their guest room, Lowri made note of the open curtains, made bed, and Steve's things were gone.

Lowri looked through her phone and quickly scanned through the missed calls and text messages. She put her phone away as Steve came out of the bathroom.

Alice was home earlier than expected and so was the girls, Lauren and Abigail. As Steve and Lowri made their way to the bottom of the stairs, on the way to explore the kitchen and find food, the front door opened and Alice came in with Lauren and Abigail, their arms filled with shopping bags, talking over each other about their day in school, Lauren, being the older at 16, was preparing for her upcoming GCSEs and Abigail, at 14, had a mountain of homework.

Alice realised that Steve and Lowri were stood at the bottom of the stairs after the front door had slammed shut. She hurriedly introduced Steve and Lowri to Lauren and Abigail, who were timid at first but they warmed up to both of them.

By the time Alexander came home from work, dinner was ready and they all sat down for the meal then they each had an early night. Both Steve and Lowri were still tired.

Firstly, Steve and Lowri went into their respective bedrooms but after twenty minutes on her own, Lowri grew restless and she couldn't settle down so she crept into Steve's room but the lights were out and she could see his sleeping form wrapped up in the blankets.

Lowri stopped short when she spied him, sleeping, she quickly backed up and reached for the door handle.

"Lowri?" Steve asked, his voice sounded tired, but now he saw sat up in bed looking at her,

"I'm sorry, Steve." Lowri said quietly, "I didn't mean to wake you. I just can't sleep."

Steve pushed the bed cover back as an invitation for her to come to bed. She huddled under the covers with him and he held her tightly.

The next morning was a grey day with clouds looming over them. Lowri was the first to wake up and she quickly made her way back into her room where she sat on her bed, staring down at her phone.

What would Peggy do in this situation? Would she stay in London for the rest of the day or would she attend this important meeting?

Lowri took her time getting dressed, the car was coming for them at 0900, the funeral was starting at 1000.

She showered again and then dried and styled her hair into an elegant bun, then she dressed in her black dress and sat on the bed before she pulled on her stockings.

Lowri took up her phone once more, her decision in her head, she booked herself a flight from London to Vienna and she messaged Nat, asking if she had a car in Vienna and if she did, could Lowri have a lift?

The answer was yes to both. They quickly arranged a plan between them and Nat offered her condolences once more before she left Lowri alone.

Steve knocked on her door with a solemn look on his face and Lowri looked up quickly. She should tell him of her plans. He needs to know.

"Hey." Steve said as he stepped into the room. He wore his black suit with a black tie and a white shirt. "The car is just pulling up. It's time to leave."

"Steve." Lowri said, she stood up and smoothed her dress down quickly. "I booked a ticket for Vienna."

Steve looked at her with wide eyes and then he nodded his head once to show his understanding.

"I've been thinking about it all night and all day, I don't know a lot about the Accords, I haven't read the document and I want to go so I can get a better understanding of them." Lowri quickly explained.

"I'm not going to stop you from going, Lowri." Steve said gently.

"You haven't told me that." Lowri said with a smirk,

"Fine." Steve said with a small smile. "I told Tony that I'm not going to stop you. And it's true."

Lowri nodded her head at him and then slipped her shoes on before following him out the door.

* * *

**Thanks all for reading!**

**Read, Review, Follow & Favourite!**


	7. Chapter 7

**I would like to apologise for the gap between stories! I know I tend to do this a lot but I am trying! All of last week I was away and didn't have access to internet, so this week I'll update twice! Seeing as this chapter ends on a little cliff hanger... expect an update on Friday!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or and Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap_

_Lowri took up her phone once more, her decision in her head, she booked herself a flight from London to Vienna and she messaged Nat, asking if she had a car in Vienna and if she did, could Lowri have a lift?_

_The answer was yes to both. They quickly arranged a plan between them and Nat offered her condolences once more before she left Lowri alone._

_Steve knocked on her door with a solemn look on his face and Lowri looked up quickly. She should tell him of her plans. He needs to know._

_"Hey." Steve said as he stepped into the room. He wore his black suit with a black tie and a white shirt. "The car is just pulling up. It's time to leave."_

_"Steve." Lowri said, she stood up and smoothed her dress down quickly. "I booked a ticket for Vienna."_

_Steve looked at her with wide eyes and then he nodded his head once to show his understanding._

_"I've been thinking about it all night and all day, I don't know a lot about the Accords, I haven't read the document and I want to go so I can get a better understanding of them." Lowri quickly explained._

_"I'm not going to stop you from going, Lowri." Steve said gently._

_"You haven't told me that." Lowri said with a smirk,_

_"Fine." Steve said with a small smile. "I told Tony that I'm not going to stop you. And it's true."_

_Lowri nodded her head at him and then slipped her shoes on before following him out the door._

* * *

Emily, Lauren, Abigail, Emily, who is Peggy's oldest daughter and her own daughter, Sophie were in the first car and there was another car for Lowri, Steve and Alexander.

The location of the service was set in the large and beautiful St Luke's Cathedral. By the time the cars reached the cathedral, the majority of the seats had been filled except for the seats at the front, reserved for family.

As Lowri walked down the aisle, searching for two seats, for herself and Steve, she looked at the crowds gathered and she saw faces that she remembered. Mostly, they were from her S. H. I. E. L. D. days.

Right in the centre of the front of the cathedral, there sat a large, blown-up photograph of Peggy from her days in the SSR.

The choir started up as soon as the family had entered the cathedral, Lowri tried to peel off but Alice clung to her and made her sit at the front where the family sits. Emily and Alice clung to each other, grieving their mother.

The coffin was brought in with eight coffin-bearers, Alexander was one and so was Steve.

The hymns began as soon as the coffin-bearers had taken their seats. Lowri held onto Steve's hand throughout the service, she kept her face straight but she really wanted to cry.

Just after the second to last hymn, the priest stepped up to the podium and looked over at the solemn crowds.

"The family of Margaret Carter would like to invite one of Margaret's old friends, Lowri, to say a few words." The priest said, Lowri's eyes widened. She had forgotten that Alice had asked her to speak. She glanced at Steve, hoping he would see the panic in his eyes but he either didn't see it or just ignored her. He dropped her hand and urged her to her feet, so she stood and stepped out into the aisle.

Her heels clicked almost ominously on the stone floor as she made her way towards the podium. Her stomach churned almost uncomfortably and the priest took her hands in his.

"Thank you." Lowri said quietly to the priest.

Lowri turned to the front and looked down at the wooden podium in front of her. She looked up at the faces in front of her.

"Peggy and I have known each other for a long time." Lowri began. "And I can only hope that the impact she had on my life mirrored on her own, because Peggy was always a strong minded woman, determined not to let anything hold her back from doing the right thing. I met Peggy first during a time when women were meant to be seen and not heard. We were paired together, often being the only two females on base who were not civilians, and not once did she complain about how messy my side of the room was."

There was a chuckle that went around the room.

"Peggy was the first person who knew me for who I really am, and what I can do, she accepted me wholeheartedly. She was an accepting woman and I admired her greatly for it, when things were getting hard for me, she brought me into her home with her children and protected me. I still admire her today for all of the work she has done for this country and for America, her work is still being carried out today and I like to think of it as a memory of the strongest woman I knew." Lowri finished, she ducked her head once and then looked at the coffin behind her, then she turned and then stepped down.

As Lowri took her seat, the priest invited Sharon Carter up to say a few words about her aunt and then shortly after the eulogy, the service ended with one more hymn and then it was time to leave for the wake, which was to be held in a pub just around the corner.

Almost immediately upon arriving in the pub, Lowri sought out Alice and told her it was time for her to go.

"I'm so sorry Alice, but it's time for me to go." Lowri began, "There's a meeting in Vienna starting soon and I need to be there."

Steve came up behind Lowri and placed his hands gently on her shoulders and squeezed slightly, reassuring her.

"Can you tell Emily that I'll see her soon? I'm so happy that I got to meet Alexander and the girls." Lowri added.

"I'll tell her." Alice said, she smiled warmly at Lowri with tears in her eyes. "Thank you so much for coming today, Mum would have loved what you said, and she would have understood the need for the meeting. And thank you, Steve, thanks for coming."

"I'm glad I could come. Your Mom was an amazing woman." Steve said softly.

Steve walked Lowri outside but they stayed inside the foyer as it was now raining, before Lowri could reach down for her case, Steve caught her in his arms and kissed her passionately.

Lowri melted into the kiss and kissed him back, winding her hands around his neck.

"Stay safe." Steve ordered, he looked at Lowri with an urgent look in his eyes. Lowri smiled in return, took up her bag and stepped out into the rain.

"No promises." She smirked before she hailed down a taxi. She darted inside and asked for Heathrow airport. As Lowri settled back against the seat, she felt her emotions rise and rise, she pushed them back down quickly before she started crying in the taxi.

Lowri let Nat know that she was on her way to the airport and asked if she was still okay to give her a lift.

The flight took two hours and to kill the time, Lowri researched the Accords Document and tried to read it. The document was huge and it used a lot of confusing words to throw off the reader, words Lowri is used to as she has had many reports land on her desk for review.

Nat was waiting for her and soon they were on the road.

"You feeling okay?" Nat asked as she started the car up and they pulled off. "The funeral was today, wasn't it?"

"Yeah." Lowri started off. "It was hard, but it's done now."

"Well, we've got an hour to get to the meeting and it's gonna take us a maximum of five minutes. We can sit down and have some food or something before we go up." Nat said, she glanced over at Lowri. "Do you have any clothes to change into?"

"Yeah. I've got another dress I can change into." Lowri replied, she looked down at herself and smiled. "Maybe the black is a bit morbid for an international meeting."

"Maybe." Nat said, "Did you leave Steve over there?"

"Yeah. I feel bad for doing so, but he understands why I'm here and not with him." Lowri said slowly.

"He's a good man. He can do nothing wrong. I'm sure he feels torn about what to do in this situation." Nay said with a knowing smile.

The conference was to be held in the UN building, it was huge and surrounded by other, smaller, buildings and not too far away from the airport. There was a dedicated lane for the UN so they bypassed the traffic and soon, they pulled up in the parking lot and Lowri was bringing out her case.

She followed Nat into the building. Lowri sent a quick text to Steve to let him know she had landed safely and was with Nat.

Once inside the UN, Lowri quickly sought out the nearest bathroom, set down her case and had a quick wash before she changed out of her black dress and into a dark blue dress, which had a pencil skirt that reached below her knees, a straight cut high over her chest, she sorted out her hair, then she took her case back to her car and kept only her phone.

Nat and Lowri made their way up to the conference room, which was absolutely massive, open and airy. The seats and desks were lined up facing the large windows.

"Wow. This place is impressive." Nat said, letting her eyes slide over the seats.

There were name tags on the desks, Lowri spotted some as she walked down the aisle.

"I'm gonna try and get a hold of Tony, he'd want to know you're here. He tried to get hold of you yesterday." Nat said, she stopped near the doors and stepped to the side to make the call while Lowri, fixated on the landscape, walked down towards the large windows.

There was a railing running across the window with a slight gap between them both, Lowri leant on the rail and looked down at the ground, there was nothing too impressive from the immediate sight but looking further out, at the skyline, Lowri felt memories come rushing back to her.

The last time she had been in Austria, was when Steve had come to the base and the SSR was trying to fight Hydra, it was when Steve took a rescue trip to the Hydra base and saved over four hundred men in one night, marching them back over three days and he had caused her so much pain. She had not known if he was alive or not.

Tears came to her eyes and she tried to wipe them away. Emotions from the day were catching up with her.

"The city is a beautiful sight, isn't it?" A deep voice startled her from her thoughts and she looked up, in the glass in front of her, she could see someone standing behind her and she turned to look at him, tears at the rims of her eyes.

"Uh, yeah, the city is lovely." Lowri said, she glanced back at the city, as if seeing it with new eyes, and she quickly wiped at her eyes.

"I'm sorry. You were not looking at the city. You were in deep thought, and I disturbed you." The man said quickly. His voice was familiar, though he spoke with an accent, she was sure she had heard him speak before.

"It's alright." Lowri said quickly, she looked down at the floor. "I'm full of deep thinking today. I've come from a funeral only a few hours ago."

"Ah. I see." He said slowly, Lowri looked back up at him and he smiled warmly at her.

"I'm sorry for dropping that on you. It's been a strange few days." She admitted, she offered the man her hand and a small smile. "I'm Lowri Jones."

"I know who you are." The man said, he smiled wider. "We have been talking on the phone about the incident that happened not too long ago."

Lowri looked at him and tilted her head in confusion but then, it dawned on her.

He's the representative of the Wakandan King, he's the one she's spent hours on the phone talking to, to try and get a solution to the problem.

"Oh, it's you I've been talking to about the Ultron incident in Sokovia." Lowri said slowly. "May I know your name, sir? I mean, now I can put a face to the voice but not a name."

"My name is T'Challa." The man replied. Lowri's eyes widened. She hadn't been talking to a simple representative of the King of Wakanda, she had been talking to the Prince of Wakanda.

"Your Highness." Lowri said, quickly bowing her head respectfully.

"There is no need for that, we are friends." Prince T'Challa said with a laugh. "It was fun talking with you, when you had no clue as to who I am, you treated me as an equal."

"I treat everyone as an equal." Lowri replied. "You are not the first Wakandan royalty I have dealt with in the past."

"I am glad of that, but in my experience, people have bent to my will when they have realised who I was, it ends up as a one-sided argument." Prince T'Challa said.

"I know how to deal with royalty." Lowri said knowingly. "And I hope we can still come to an agreement?"

"I hope that we can too." Prince T'Challa said with a smile. "I am glad that you are here, Ms Jones, to hear a familiar voice in a room full of strangers is a welcoming thought."

"Why? You don't agree with all of this?" Lowri asked, gesturing to the room that had been steadily filling up since she and Prince T'Challa began talking. Nat was making her way towards them quickly, a slightly serious look on her face.

"The Accords, yes. The politics, not really." Prince T'Challa replied.

"You're still young in this world, Prince T'Challa, you have plenty of time to learn the politics of this world." Lowri said with a knowing smile. "And I don't particularly agree with the way these Accords have been brought around in the one month gap between Lagos and now."

Nat came to a stop beside Lowri and offered a smile to Prince T'Challa.

"Did you get a hold of Tony?" Lowri asked, looking at Nat.

"Yeah, I did, he's acting big-headed as usual. He's in the Berlin Command Centre, apparently he wants to see us later." Nat said, she looked from Lowri to Prince T'Challa with a wary look on her face.

"Your Highness, this is Natasha Romanoff, an ex S. H. I. E. L. D. agent and employee of mine, now we work together. And Nat, this is Prince T'Challa of Wakanda." Lowri said, introducing the two of them.

Nat bowed her head respectfully and offered her hand for Prince T'Challa to shake. Prince T'Challa turned back to Lowri with a warm smile.

"Two people in a room can get more done than a hundred, that I know." Prince T'Challa confirmed.

"Unless you need to move a piano." The smooth voice of an elder man came from the side of them and all three turned to see the King of Wakanda smiling at them. "Then you will be glad of the company."

The King and Prince T'Challa welcomed each other in their native tongue, making Lowri smile at hearing Wakandan again.

"Ms Jones, you have not changed one bit since we last saw each other." King T'Chaka said warmly.

"I have been told that once or twice." Lowri replied with a smile, she offered her hand and she and King T'Chaka shook hands firmly. "You have aged well, my King, and going back to the piano reference, I am sure you were able to lift a piano by yourself when we first met."

"That I could, Ms Jones." King T'Chaka replied.

"King T'Chaka, please allow me to apologise for what happened in Nigeria." Nat said, bowing her head respectfully to the King.

"Thank you, and thank you for agreeing to all of this, both of you." King T'Chaka said, gesturing to the room. "I am sad to hear that Captain Rogers will not be joining us today."

Lowri glanced down at the floor, knowing full well that she left Steve in London, at her oldest friend's funeral.

"Yes. So am I." Nat said, Lowri knew that she was looking at her.

"If everyone could please be seated, this assembly is now in session." A man said over the speaker.

"That is the future calling. It has been a pleasure." Prince T'Challa said to Nat, he turned to Lowri with a warm smile on his face. "I hope we can still work through this."

"I'm sure we will." Lowri said with a nod.

"Thank you." Nat said to the King and to the Prince.

"We should meet up, King T'Chaka." Lowri said as Nat stepped off for her seat. "I'm sure we have much to discuss."

Lowri stepped off after Nat and caught up with her as they climbed the first few steps. They were three levels behind the front, open area.

"Where do you know King T'Chaka from?" Nat asked in a hushed tone as they took their seats.

"I have been alive for a long time, Nat. I've mingled with the majority of the royalty in this world." Lowri replied as she pulled the skirt of her dress straight and sat down. "The Wakandans have a loyal and just king in King T'Chaka, he knows what his people want."

They settled in their sears as the assembly began.

Each country that had added signatures to the Accords had sent representatives to explain the reasons why they signed, to explain why the Avengers should sign and what would happen if they failed to sign.

After half of the representatives had stood and taken to the stage with their words, King T'Chaka finally took to the stage and spoke to the audience with his soothing and charming voice.

"When stolen Wakandan vibranium was sued to make a terrible weapon of war, we in Wakanda were forced to question our own legacy. Those men and women killed in Nigeria were part of a good will mission from a country too long in the shadows. We will not, however, let misfortune drive us back. We will fight to improve the world we wish to join." King T'Chaka said, Lowri felt a familiar lull wash over her and as King T'Chaka spoke, Lowri's eyes drifted to his son, Prince T'Challa, who was leaning on the tailing and looking out the window as his father's voice rang out clearly through the room. "I am grateful to the Avengers for supporting this initiative. Wakanda is proud to extend its hand in peace-"

The next second accelerated so quickly, there was one moment of peace as King T'Chaka spoke but the next moment, Prince T'Challa turned to his father and began running towards him with panic written all over his face and his body was rigid with fear.

He bellowed out to everyone to get down but it was too late.

Lowri, upon seeing Prince T'Challa turn from the window with that fear written on his face, she got to her feet and threw herself over the desks in front of her and she landed on the floor, she headed for the King. She knew she had to protect him.

She had no clue what Prince T'Challa was running from but she knew it must be something dangerous.

The explosion thundered around them violently and it shook the building to its core, the force of the explosion had shocked Lowri's body and thrown her backwards into the front of the first set of desks. The glass desks shattered around her and the window glass was shattered and thrown into the room and it rained on everyone inside.

Black smoke billowed upwards and as Lowri pushed herself to a seating position, she looked down at herself, she saw glass embedded in her hands, arms, legs, she felt some in her neck, the lull after the explosion was almost deafening.

Lowri stumbled to her feet and she pushed her way through the crowds until she reached the father and son.

There was a panic going on behind her but as the dust settled, Lowri's eyes fell on the two men in front of her, one sobbing over the body of the other.

Lowri noted that even in death, King T'Chaka looked at peace.

Her sense of danger never left her body, even as debris fell around them and the people in the room, the high ranking officers of the world, began to realise what had happened, who was injured and began planning on what next to do.

Lowri walked past King T'Chaka and Prince T'Challa, her nerves were at an end, every cell of her body was alive and brimming with adrenalin. Lowri stepped up to the edge of the building, where the window once stood, she peered out into the world below.

Her throat constricted as she breathed in the thick, black smoke and as she coughed to clear her airways, she saw a red flashing light just below the window, clear of the smoke. Her eyes widened as she saw what it really was.

There seemed to be no time for any word of warning, the next explosion sounded before anyone felt anything.

* * *

**Thanks to all who read my stories!**

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	8. Chapter 8

**I am sorry for not updating Friday... things kind of blew out of proportion. So, yesterday I lost someone who was very close and very dear to me and I am really struggling so I've thrown myself into writing. **

**I might not be updating this week due to certain circumstances but do watch this space in case I do.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own ant Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arc.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap_

_Lowri, upon seeing Prince T'Challa turn from the window with that fear written on his face, she got to her feet and threw herself over the desks in front of her and she landed on the floor, she headed for the King. She knew she had to protect him._

_She had no clue what Prince T'Challa was running from but she knew it must be something dangerous._

_The explosion thundered around them violently and it shook the building to its core, the force of the explosion had shocked Lowri's body and thrown her backwards into the front of the first set of desks. The glass desks shattered around her and the window glass was shattered and thrown into the room and it rained on everyone inside._

_Black smoke billowed upwards and as Lowri pushed herself to a seating position, she looked down at herself, she saw glass embedded in her hands, arms, legs, she felt some in her neck, the lull after the explosion was almost deafening._

_Lowri stumbled to her feet and she pushed her way through the crowds until she reached the father and son._

_There was a panic going on behind her but as the dust settled, Lowri's eyes fell on the two men in front of her, one sobbing over the body of the other._

_Lowri noted that even in death, King T'Chaka looked at peace._

_Her sense of danger never left her body, even as debris fell around them and the people in the room, the high ranking officers of the world, began to realise what had happened, who was injured and began planning on what next to do._

_Lowri walked past King T'Chaka and Prince T'Challa, her nerves were at an end, every cell of her body was alive and brimming with adrenalin. Lowri stepped up to the edge of the building, where the window once stood, she peered out into the world below._

_Her throat constricted as she breathed in the thick, black smoke and as she coughed to clear her airways, she saw a red flashing light just below the window, clear of the smoke. Her eyes widened as she saw what it really was._

_There seemed to be no time for any word of warning, the next explosion sounded before anyone felt anything._

* * *

Lowri threw up her firewall before the explosion could rock the inside of the room and it forms a barrier, no debris could get inside, the second bomb couldn't hurt anyone, only Lowri.

She stumbled backwards under the pressure that was forced against her shield, she struggled hold it back.

She heard the screams behind her.

She felt every muscle in her body tighten and strain with the pressure, she felt the blood rush to her head and she felt her body shake violently.

Her nose began bleeding and it felt as though each of her cells were set alight and burning hot. Lowri stumbled backwards again and then she collapsed, she fell backwards and fell right into someone's arms as the explosion died down, her nose bled heavily and she felt weak all over as all her blood drained from her head..

Her entire body hurt and she closed her eyes against the pain, the screaming and all the horror.

Someone was shaking Lowri's shoulders gently, as if not to harm her. Her eyes began opening and all she could see was the white ceiling of an ambulance.

"Lowri? Lowri!" Lowri fought hard to recognise the voice but eventually it came back to her, Nat.

Lowri finally came to in the back of an ambulance, she had an oxygen mask on her face and she had a neck brace strapped onto her.

"Lowri? Oh my God, you scared me half to death." Nat breathed out when she realised that Lowri had regained consciousness. "How are you feeling? How did you know that there was a second bomb?"

"I saw the red light. I saw the device strapped to the building." Lowri replied, she found out that it hurt to talk. "There was nothing else for me to do."

"You did a good job, Ri. No one else was hurt in the second explosion." Nat said, she looked at Lowri. "You're being hailed as a hero by the media, they got fantastic few shots of you looking all heroic."

"I am in no way a hero." Lowri replied. Two paramedics came to the back of the ambulance and stood next to Nat, looking in on her.

One of them started speaking in German to the other paramedic about what they were going to do.

"What's the diagnosis?" Lowri asked, speaking in halting German. They snapped their eyes to her and looked at her with wide eyes.

"We need to take you into the hospital." One of the paramedics said

"Why?" Lowri asked.

"Because you were deceased for half an hour, ma'am." The other paramedic replied.

"They're taking me in." Lowri said this time in English, she looked at Nat. "You go to the Berlin Command Centre, that's where Tony is, right?"

Nat nodded her head and she took a step back.

"Don't die on us, again, hero." Nat said, smirking at Lowri.

"I'll meet you in Berlin." Lowri said, she looked at the paramedics and gave them a nod. "Take me away."

For once, Lowri didn't argue as she was taken to their accident and emergency department. She had bloods taken and she was examined by very confused doctors, even though she did explain to them a few times that she heals a lot faster than others and that she can't actually die.

After about two hours, one of the more senior doctors came in to talk to Lowri about her bloods. At first, she was expecting him to tell her what she already knew, that she had a tiny speck of mutation on her DNA but he told her something quite different.

"There was something we noticed in your blood, certain hormone levels that spiked." The doctor said, speaking in German.

"Hormone levels?" Lowri asked sharply. "What hormones?"

"Hormones associated with pregnancy." The doctor said, Lowri's eyes widened and she slumped against her bed. "Have you been displaying signs of pregnancy recently?"

Lowri was silent for a few seconds as her brain processed everything. It all makes sense, the vomiting, the tiredness.

"I-I think so." Lowri said slowly.

The doctor nodded his head but he never smiled and that was something that set Lowri on edge. Without any prompting, he continued.

"We can confirm that you were pregnant earlier today but when you died for that half an hour earlier, you miscarried." The doctor said. He looked down at his notes. "And due to your accelerated healing rate, your miscarriage has already passed. I am so sorry, Ms Jones."

Lowri looked down at her hands with tears in her eyes.

"I'll give you some time to think." The doctor said solemnly, he got to his feet and left Lowri alone with her thoughts.

She had been pregnant for all of this time and she had not caught onto the signs. First of all, Lowri wanted to beat herself for not realising sooner, she had been through this before, she knew the signs.

Lowri was left alone for half an hour before she discharged herself. She managed to book herself a flight from Vienna to Berlin and borrow a phone for a few seconds to call for a taxi.

Nat had left Lowri her card, her military ID, her regular ID and a small wad of cash.

She used her card for the flight, she used the cash for the taxi from the Berlin Tegal airport to the Berlin Command Centre.

Lowri was silent throughout her flight, she had plenty of time to think about whether she should tell Steve or not. Her mind kept turning and turning throughout her flight and throughout her taxi journey.

Steve felt like his choice had hardened his heart and soul. He _needed _to be the one to bring Bucky in. He had to.

The building that Bucky had bombed, the UN, for whatever, whether it to kill the world's leaders and their representatives or not, but Lowri was in that building with Nat. Steve wasn't sure of Lowri's whereabouts, he had just spoken to Nat.

There would always be a part of his mind locked on her, on Lowri, but there was another part focusing on finding Bucky safely.

Steve strode into the little café in Vienna and went straight to the bar where Sam was sat, sunglasses on and enjoying a bowl of the house soup.

Sam didn't even glance at Steve as he stopped beside him.

"Did she tell you to stay out of it?" Sam asked before he scooped another spoonful of soup up.

"Lowri didn't answer her phone." Steve replied through gritted teeth. That part of his mind that's locked on Lowri was worried, she wasn't answering the phone and Nat had not mentioned her at all.

"Did you call Nat?" Sam asked, he looked dead ahead of him. "Did she tell you to stay out of it?"

Steve didn't reply, knowing full well that Nat had said to stay out of it, because of his closeness with Bucky, she thought it was best for him to keep his nose out but Steve simply couldn't.

"Might have a point." Sam noted.

"He would do it for me." Steve said quickly.

"In 1945, maybe." Sam replied. He put his spoon down on the countertop and looked at Steve. "I just want to make sure that we consider all our options. The people that shoot at you usually wind up shooting at me too."

Steve pressed his lips together and he leant heavily onto the countertop in front of him.

A blonde woman came to a stop and leant on the countertop to the right of him.

"The tips have been pouring in since that footage went public. Everyone thinks that the Winter Soldier goes to their gym. Most of it is noise. Except this." Sharon Carter said before she slid a thin brown paper folder across the countertop to Steve. "My boss expects a briefing, pretty much now. This is all the head start you're gonna get."

"Thank you." Steve said slowly, he picked up the folder gingerly and he weighed it in his hands.

"You're gonna have to hurry too." Sharon said, Steve looked at her quickly. "We have orders to shoot on sight."

"Sharon." Steve said quickly as Sharon turned to walk away. Steve hastily passed the folder to Sam and he turned to face her as she turned back around. "Do you know anything about the people that were inside the UN?"

"You're asking about your friends, aren't you?" Sharon asked, she looked a little uncomfortable. Steve nodded his head quickly. "Your friend Nat made it would with cuts and bruises, that's all. She's fine."

Steve noted quickly that she didn't mention Lowri.

"And Lowri?" Steve asked.

"We know that Lowri definitely survived the first explosion, the media got great snaps of her standing in the window just before the second one went off." Sharon said slowly. Steve looked at her intently. "The last report we had from our guys on the inside that Lowri collapsed as the explosion died down and she was pronounced dead at scene."

Steve felt his entire body stiffen as Sharon spoke, he clenched his fists until his knuckles went white and then he turned from her. He heard her leave but he didn't acknowledge it.

Lowri cannot be dead, she can't die.

"Maybe Carter heard wrong. Maybe she just passed out, maybe she's still alive." Sam said slowly.

"No." Steve said, shaking his head. "The attack was over two hours ago, even with Lowri's slower healing rate, it would have taken her about half an hour tops to come back."

Steve was silent for a few seconds as he took note of something new, his chest felt hollow, as if his own heart had stopped beating.

"I think she's dead." Steve said in a hollow voice." Bucky killed her."

How could Steve go on now that he knew Lowri was no longer alive? She had been his rock when he had come back from the ice and now, they had come so far but this was now the end for them,

This just made him even more determined to be the one to bring Bucky in, he needed Bucky to know what his actions had done. Maybe Bucky could remember their conversation from all those years ago.

* * *

**Thanks all for reading**

**Read, Review, Follow & Favourite!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hi all, I hope you're ready for the next update! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap_

_"Sharon." Steve said quickly as Sharon turned to walk away. Steve hastily passed the folder to Sam and he turned to face her as she turned back around. "Do you know anything about the people that were inside the UN?"_

_"You're asking about your friends, aren't you?" Sharon asked, she looked a little uncomfortable. Steve nodded his head quickly. "Your friend Nat made it would with cuts and bruises, that's all. She's fine."_

_Steve noted quickly that she didn't mention Lowri._

_"And Lowri?" Steve asked._

_"We know that Lowri definitely survived the first explosion, the media got great snaps of her standing in the window just before the second one went off." Sharon said slowly. Steve looked at her intently. "The last report we had from our guys on the inside that Lowri collapsed as the explosion died down and she was pronounced dead at scene."_

_Steve felt his entire body stiffen as Sharon spoke, he clenched his fists until his knuckles went white and then he turned from her. He heard her leave but he didn't acknowledge it._

_Lowri cannot be dead, she can't die._

_"Maybe Carter heard wrong. Maybe she just passed out, maybe she's still alive." Sam said slowly._

_"No." Steve said, shaking his head. "The attack was over two hours ago, even with Lowri's slower healing rate, it would have taken her about half an hour tops to come back."_

_Steve was silent for a few seconds as he took note of something new, his chest felt hollow, as if his own heart had stopped beating._

_"I think she's dead." Steve said in a hollow voice." Bucky killed her."_

_How could Steve go on now that he knew Lowri was no longer alive? She had been his rock when he had come back from the ice and now, they had come so far but this was now the end for them,_

_This just made him even more determined to be the one to bring Bucky in, he needed Bucky to know what his actions had done. Maybe Bucky could remember their conversation from all those years ago._

* * *

The taxi Lowri was sat in was stopped at the gates of the Berlin Command Centre and wasn't allowed to drive onto the base, which Lowri understood, she paid the driver, got out and whipped out her military ID to the guard on duty, almost at once he allowed her entrance and she walked onto the base.

If she remembered correctly, the building she wanted stood off centre of the middle of the compound, she knew it was close to the MT section of the base.

She set of walking and found that she was right. It took twenty minutes to walk from the gate to the big massive building where all operations came out of.

Once again, she flashed her military ID to the guard on the door and he waved her inside. She stepped through into the huge open space under the building and found a set of four guards, heavily armed, waiting to meet her.

She followed them up the steps and towards a lift, they headed up to the 5th floor and Lowri was led down a series of corridors. The building had since been updated and renovated since Lowri was last in Berlin, which was closer to 1945 than today.

Finally, they turned off one the corridors and they entered a large room that was lit with artificial lighting and was busy with people.

Everett Ross, the director of the American branch of the Berlin Command Centre, stood in front of Lowri with a sneer on his face.

He had never liked Lowri for some reason, he was a generally nice guy but he rubbed off wrong with Lowri right from the start when he first mixed with S. H. I. E. L. D. and Lowri, obviously.

"Well, well, well, look who finally turns up." Ross began as Lowri first entered the room. "Some of us have been working around the clock to try and sort out this mess."

"You try dying and coming back to life." Lowri snapped as she walked past Ross, she glanced back at him. "I am so glad to see someone else in my shoes, trying to fulfil an impossible task. Oh, how I have missed the job."

Lowri kept on walking further down the room.

On the right was chairs and tables, set up as a break area with tables and chairs, a tea and coffee machine and a vending machine. In the centre of the room was a glass office with the table and chairs set up, at the back of the room there were computers, monitors and people managing the computers.

Tony was in that little glass office, talking to someone on his phone.

Nat met Lowri at the tables and Lowri saw the look on her face, worry. Lowri had never had a lot of reason to visit hospitals before, other than the time she was taken by Hydra, of course she would be worried.

As Lowri walked closer, she seriously debated telling Nat about her ordeal but she decided against it, now is not the time.

"Any news on Bucky?" Lowri asked as Nat came to a stop in front of her.

"No." Nat said quickly. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel fine. They just did a normal check up, you know, bloods and stuff. All came back unnormal and they tried to break it to me that there was something really wrong, which of course I already know about." Lowri said, she shrugged her shoulders.

At that moment, Tony came out of the little glass office and he steered his way over to them.

"Your boyfriend needs to stop causing trouble." Tony said as he stepped towards them, he slid his phone into his pocket.

"As if I can control what Steve does." Lowri replied as she scowled at him. As Lowri turned to face Tony, she saw Everett Ross give her a calculating look. Lowri leant on the back of a chair and Tony looked at her sharply. "And he's not my boyfriend."

"Oh my God, what happened to you?" Tony asked sharply as he looked her up and down.

For the first time, Lowri actually looked down at herself. She was no longer in her blue dress, instead she was in clothes found in the lost and found. She did look a mess.

"Oh, didn't you hear? The UN got blown up." Lowri asked sarcastically. She crossed her arms over her chest. "It bloody hurt."

"Ri held back that second explosion and died." Nat said, she threw a smirk at Lowri. "You know how she can get when she dies. She's a little grumpy."

"I am not grumpy." Lowri insisted.

Tony and Nat shared a look at then Tony looked at her before he shrugged off his rich looking suit jacket and handed it to her.

"Here." Tony said as Lowri slipped it over her shoulders. "You're indecent."

"I'm sure your stuff is inside the car." Nat said, she pushed herself from the table and began walking away. "I'll be right back."

Lowri slid into a seat and leant her elbows on the table.

"We don't know what Barnes is planning, I don't think we ever will. He's gone off the radar. But why would he bomb the UN?" Lowri asked.

"Who knows? What I do know is, we can't jump to conclusions, whatever we do." Tony said, he glanced at Everett Ross, now standing by the monitors at the back of the room with his arms crossed. "Like he wants us to do. We have to listen to him, we have to look like we don't agree with what Steve is doing."

"I don't agree with what he's doing." Lowri said slowly. "Steve _should _step back from all of this. Bucky is a weak spot for him."

"He should, but he won't." Tony noted with a small smile.

"I can only hope that we get to Bucky before he can. If we get there before he does, we can prevent Steve from doing something stupid." Lowri said quietly. She glanced up at Ross.

"I agree. But, we can't go out there and track him ourselves. Ross has got the special forces deployed. The less involvement we have, the better we help." Tony said.

At this, Nat came back with Lowri's little bag and Lowri took it from her, she went into the nearest ladies bathroom and took a bit longer to get changed.

She did have a quick wash before she changed into a pair of black jeans and cream shirt, brown boots and grey jacket.

There were new scars decorating her arms, legs and neck from the glass splinters, ever since her coma, she had been more prone to scarring and it took longer for them to go.

As Lowri braided her hair back, she looked at herself and allowed herself to imagine herself with a baby bump.

Years, years and years have passed since Lowri had last fallen pregnant and lost the child but the memories of the pain were still fresh in her head.

Finally, Lowri reappeared back out in the large control room and as she took her seat at the table with a cup of hot tea in her hands, Tony and Nat looked at her.

"Ross has dispatched the German Special Forces to work alongside the Romanian Army to surround Barnes' hiding place." Tony hissed.

"Already?" Lowri asked in a quiet tone.

"Already." Tony confirmed.

"He's flying them out now on the fastest jet the American military own." Nat said, she looked at Lowri. "And they're using one of the stolen S. H. I. E. L. D. cargo planes to bring Steve and Barnes in."

"Any word on Steve?" Lowri asked with a sigh.

"None." Nat replied.

Lowri rose to her feet, took up her hot cup of tea and headed down to the back of the room with all the monitors.

She was looking for new information but there was none. She then scanned the monitors, some were displaying various points of the same street.

"These three monitors by here are linked with the street cameras on the street where Barnes has been located." Ross came up beside Lowri, still with his arms crossed over his chest. "We can see everything that's going in and out of that street. Do you see that building, just up in the top left corner of the screen?"

Lowri looked up to where Ross was pointing and spied a large multi-story building, obviously accommodation, with soldiers surrounding it.

"That's where Barnes is hiding. And my men are going to get him." Ross said almost happily. "And they're ordered to shoot on sight. It doesn't matter if he's in there alone or if others are with him. But they're ordered to shoot on sight."

Lowri's eyes widened quickly and she looked at him. Ross had been watching Lowri for a reaction and he had one, but not the one he was expecting.

He was expecting Lowri to claim out not to shoot on sight because of Steve.

"But what if there are civilians inside there?" Lowri asked sharply. "Are your men going to mow down hundreds of civilians for one man?"

Ross looked at her bug-eyed. He seemed to have forgotten that her mind is trained, she has been in his position for longer than he has been alive.

"And even if there are no civilians in there, you're going to cause so much damage, which our tax-payers will need to cover the cost." Lowri continued. "And what if Bucky overpowers your men?"

"What do you mean?" Ross asked quickly.

"Barnes has got a metal arm, given to him by Hydra. What happens if Bucky overpowers your men?" Lowri asked. She could tell that Ross hasn't yet thought of these things and was quickly making a hasty plan of action. "The main goal should always be the safety of the civilians who could be involved."

"I have everything in hand, Ms. Jones." Ross said through gritted teeth. He suddenly relaxed, which set Lowri on edge. "Why do you call Barnes, Bucky? Do you know where he has been all along? Are you friendly with him?"

"Bucky is his nickname, Everett." Lowri replied. She looked away from Ross. "I knew Bucky during the war. Steve Rogers introduced us during the Hydra attack in Austria 1943, after he marched over 400 men from a Hydra base."

"He's a changed man now." Ross said in a hard tone. "You old people need to let go of the past."

"I hope you realise that if we old people hadn't done what we did, Bucky included, then you wouldn't be speaking in that smooth American accent." Lowri replied quickly.

"He's not the same he was in '45. And you can't treat him as such." Ross said with a scowl.

"Obviously he's not the same." Lowri replied. "I'm not the same person I was when I was 18."

Ross was silent for a few seconds before he started talking again.

"I'm having Barnes looked at when we bring him in. He's have a psychological expert look at him and give him an evaluation and then we can see whether he remembers everything bad he has ever done to this world or not." Ross said in a low, threatening tone. "We're gonna throw him in a cell and lock him away."

"Sir! We've got something!" Someone called out, Ross moved closer to the front of the monitors and looked around hastily.

"_Sir, we have a perimeter of the building._" A man's voice came through the radio.

"Set up a communication link with the commanding officer of the Germans. I want to know first-hand everything that's going on." Ross ordered.

Lowri took a step backwards and she almost collided with Tony.

"It's starting. I think he's in there." Tony whispered into her ear.

Lowri stood in front of him, but she turned her head slightly so she could reply.

"Ross is nervous. He's having Bucky assessed by a professional to see if he can remember all his kills." She reported. "He has no fail-safe in case civilians are harmed."

Tony looked down at the floor.

"He's going crazy." Tony muttered under his breath.

All eyes were locked onto the monitors, all now were displaying some sort of live action feed from Romania, where Bucky was. Some were of street cameras, others were of the view of the soldiers.

"What's going on out there? Do you have sight on Barnes?" Ross asked down the radio, loudly.

"_Pardon? Was sagst du_?" The commanding officer replied. Did he not speak English? Did Ross have no one here, in the Berlin Command Centre, who could translate?

"What did he say?" Ross asked loudly, he looked around the room.

"Let me put that through a translator." One of the guys at the computers piped up. He typed furiously on his computer but it was taking too long. "He said '_What are you saying_?"

Ross let out a sigh as he knew this was going to be a long mission. Lowri smiled to herself and then pushed her way to the front.

"Let me translate." She said, she put out her hand for the headpiece so she could translate more quickly.

"No." Ross immediately put in.

"It wasn't a yes or no question, heck, it wasn't even a question." Lowri retorted.

The head piece was handed to her and she put it on and began speaking.

"_Have you got sights on the building where Barnes is hiding_?" Lowri asked, speaking in German. It had been many years since Lowri had last spoken in German and she felt her tongue refuse to bend to the words at first.

"_Da. He is in the building. We have sights on the room where Barnes is located. Another male is with him. Do we approach with the same orders_?" The commanding officer asked.

"What did he say?" Ross asked quickly before Lowri could even think,

"He said Bucky is in the building and they have sights on the room where he is hiding." Lowri said quickly.

Ross looked at her with narrowed eyes.

"There's more." Ross said impatentily.

"I know. I'm thinking of the words to translate." Lowri snapped. In reality, she had been thinking about changing the words, she could save Steve and Bucky. "There is another male with him, do they have the same orders?"

She bit down on her lip. She wished she could just translate wrong but her own morals won't let her. She knew Steve was in the wrong.

"Yes." Ross said with a sneer.

"_Yes. Approach with the same orders._" Lowri said to the commanding officer.

"_Copy that._" The commanding officer replied.

Before Ross could demand for the commanding officer's reply, Lowri turned to him and told him what the commanding officer had said.

"_Building surrounded._" The commanding officer reported, Lowri quickly repeated the words in English.

"Tell the commanding officer to keep his men low." Ross ordered, "We don't need to bring any attention from the media. You did enough of that yesterday."

Lowri pressed her lips together and tried her best not to retort to Ross, instead she turned away from him.

"_The big boss says to keep low and don't bring the attention of the media to you. I would slap him for not thinking, of course you guys know what you're doing._" Lowri said.

"_Don't get into trouble for us. I'll sort him out when we finish here._" The commanding officer replied.

"What did he say?" Ross asked quickly.

"He said that was his plan." Lowri replied, her eyes flickered to Tony and Nat, who were now stood closer. Judging by their looks, they knew she was lying.

"_Ready to infiltrate._" Came the voice of the commanding officer.

After those words, all hell seemed to break loose. There were yells, cries, yelps and thuds, bans, gunshots.

There was radio silence while this was going through, there was cussing and the sound of metal, then someone spoke.

"_Barnes has escaped! I repeat, Barnes has escaped! Rogers is on the scene and the Falcon has been spotted._" There was some heavy breathing. "_There's an unknown in the field. Dressed in all black with metal claws and ears like a cat._"

"He said that Barnes has escaped." Lowri reported, she turned back to Ross and faced him. "Steve is on the scene with Sam Wilson, and there is an unknown in the field, all black, sharp metal claws and ears like a cat."

"_The fight is on the street. Civilians involved._"

Lowri's eyes widened.

"Civilians involved, the fight is on the streets." Lowri said, she turned away from Ross. "_Orders changed, no shooting. Protect the civilians and get them off the street._"

"What did you tell them?" Ross asked as he stepped forward.

"That the orders have changed. I told them not to shoot if civilians are involved, I told them to move the civilians off the streets." Lowri replied, she put the headpiece down and stepped away.

Ross scowled at her for ordering something instead of him.

"Get me eyes on the street, people!" Ross yelled.

Lowri stepped backwards again and out of the way.

At this, Nat, Tony and Lowri were shut out of any planning to deal with the new danger as the fight was taken out onto the streets and on top of buildings. Then, the fight was taken onto an underground tunnel where vehicles were travelling at fast speeds.

There was noise over the radio and an unclear image of how it actually ended, but Rhodey landed between them all and the fight was ended, the German Special Forces reached them, guns at the ready and within the next second, handcuffs were slapped onto all offenders.

Bucky was locked into a containment unit and strapped into a huge lorry. Steve, Sam and the unknown were locked in separate cars and driven away.

Lowri held her breath as she watched the street view camera of Steve being bundled into the back of a car and then it sped off.

Rhodey was called up and ordered to lead the clean up. Lowri removed herself from the back of the toom and she returned to the table she had occupied with Nat and Tony.

Tony was taken back into the glass office as his phone began ringing. Lowri reached for her own, but then she realised it had been destroyed in the second explosion. Nat took a seat opposite her and looked at her with a grim look on her face.

"Wonder who's talking Tony's ear off?" Nat asked as she glanced at Tony in the office.

"Someone high up in the food chain." Lowri said, she glanced at Tony and then looked back at Nat. "I'm glad I'm not on Tony's end of the call. I still can't believe that Steve ignored your warnings and still went ahead to help Bucky."

"Everyone has their weakness." Nat said quietly.

Lowri looked up at Nat as her stomach grumbled, usually, by now she should have stuffed her face with all sorts of goody food but she hadn't eaten since yesterday, on the flight from London.

"I'm starving. Does this place have something to eat? I would rather a canteen or something instead of that vending machine." Lowri asked, she turned her head to the left and then to the right to catch a view of a sign or something but instead she found herself looking at a shocked Sharon Carter.

"You're alive." Sharon breathed out in surprise.

* * *

**Thanks all for reading**

**Read, Review, Follow & Favourite!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Happy Wednesday, all!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap_

_"Get me eyes on the street, people!" Ross yelled._

_Lowri stepped backwards again and out of the way._

_At this, Nat, Tony and Lowri were shut out of any planning to deal with the new danger as the fight was taken out onto the streets and on top of buildings. Then, the fight was taken onto an underground tunnel where vehicles were travelling at fast speeds._

_There was noise over the radio and an unclear image of how it actually ended, but Rhodey landed between them all and the fight was ended, the German Special Forces reached them, guns at the ready and within the next second, handcuffs were slapped onto all offenders._

_Bucky was locked into a containment unit and strapped into a huge lorry. Steve, Sam and the unknown were locked in separate cars and driven away._

_Lowri held her breath as she watched the street view camera of Steve being bundled into the back of a car and then it sped off._

_Rhodey was called up and ordered to lead the clean up. Lowri removed herself from the back of the toom and she returned to the table she had occupied with Nat and Tony._

_Tony was taken back into the glass office as his phone began ringing. Lowri reached for her own, but then she realised it had been destroyed in the second explosion. Nat took a seat opposite her and looked at her with a grim look on her face._

_"Wonder who's talking Tony's ear off?" Nat asked as she glanced at Tony in the office._

_"Someone high up in the food chain." Lowri said, she glanced at Tony and then looked back at Nat. "I'm glad I'm not on Tony's end of the call. I still can't believe that Steve ignored your warnings and still went ahead to help Bucky."_

_"Everyone has their weakness." Nat said quietly._

_Lowri looked up at Nat as her stomach grumbled, usually, by now she should have stuffed her face with all sorts of goody food but she hadn't eaten since yesterday, on the flight from London._

_"I'm starving. Does this place have something to eat? I would rather a canteen or something instead of that vending machine." Lowri asked, she turned her head to the left and then to the right to catch a view of a sign or something but instead she found herself looking at a shocked Sharon Carter._

_"You're alive." Sharon breathed out in surprise._

* * *

"Yes. I'm alive." Lowri said, narrowing her eyes up at Sharon. "Why wouldn't I be?"

She had not seen Sharon Carter since the funeral, she should have been surprised to see her here, but she works with the CIA and is based her, from what Lowri's heard.

"I told Captain Rogers that you were dead." Sharon said slowly, she took a little step back from Lowri and for good reason.

"What?" Lowri asked sharply and she pushed herself to her feet and looked Sharon in the eye. "Why did you tell Steve I'm dead?"

"He asked after you. And all the intel I had was that you were dead." Sharon replied.

"When did you see him?" Lowri asked as she took a step towards Sharon. Nat rose to her feet gingerly and put her hand onto the table, which Lowri saw in the corner of her eye and she reigned herself in.

"Shortly after the second bomb went off. He came over with me." Sharon replied, she lowered her voice, now seemingly not to be scared of Lowri. "I gave him intel on Barnes, you know how much he wanted to help him."

"You're the one who told him where Bucky was?" Lowri hissed. She felt the anger inside her rise as she looked at the person who aided Steve in his fool-hardy mission. "Do you realise how much trouble Steve is in because of you?"

Sharon took a step back as soon as Lowri flared up and Nat stepped towards her.

"He wanted to find Barnes. He wanted to be the one to bring him in, for you." Sharon hissed back.

Lowri spotted Everett Ross catch a look at them and it caught his interest, Lowri closed her eyes and then sighed. When she opened her eyes, Ross was making his way towards them.

"Let's go get something to eat?" Lowri suggested. Sharon looked at Lowri stupidly but Nat had caught on and had spotted Ross on his way over.

"I could do with some food. I am starved." Nat added.

"What's everyone talking about?" Ross asked as he stopped beside them and looked at them all, but his eyes lingered on Lowri, as if he didn't trust her.

"I was just asking Sharon if there was some place to eat, I'm starved." Lowri replied."

"How do you two know each other?" Ross asked, keeping his eyes on Lowri.

"S. H. I. E. L. D." Sharon quickly replied.

"I tended to train with some of my agents when I had the free time." Lowri added.

"Well, don't let me stop you." Ross said, forcing a smile onto his face as he stepped back to let the three of them pass.

Lowri looked back at Sharon and then she led Lowri and Nat out of the room, down some more corridors and through more doors. Lowri kept her lips pressed shut, she was still angry with Sharon at supplying Steve with the intel on Bucky.

They headed up some stairs before ending up in the cafeteria where there was a buffet style service but the food didn't look that appetising. Lowri, being the hungry one, loaded her tray with all sorts of food and was the first to sit with Nat beside her and Sharon opposite her, each with food.

"So," Lowri began as she dug into her food. "Quick cover back there."

"Thanks." Sharon replied, she smiled. "I tried to pick up a few things from you whenever I shared the same sparring mat as you. My instructor was useless."

"Who did you have?" Nat asked, spooning her soup-looking dish.

"Abraham." Sharon answered.

"Oh. He's terrible. I can see why you wanted to try and copy Ri. I don't even know how he passed his instructor's exam." Nat said shaking her head. She looked at her bowl and pulled a face. "How can you eat that?"

"I'm starving." Lowri said simply, she stuffed a small piece of bread with some sort of cheese on it into her mouth and chewed. "I did die yesterday; I need to eat."

"So, you did actually die?" Sharon asked quickly.

"Yes, well, this is where it gets complicated." Lowri said, she put her food down. "This would be the third time I've died, the two instances before was when I was shot point blank, I guess I put so much pressure onto my body yesterday that I died. I did have a nosebleed and everything was hurting so bad."

"So, I was right?" Sharon asked, "You died."

"I died, but Steve must have thought I'd actually died." Lowri said slowly.

"He called me and asked how I was." Nat put in, "I didn't know how to tell him about your condition at the time."

"He is such an idiot." Lowri sighed, she picked up her fork and dug into her lasagne type dish and began eating. "Did he really go after Bucky to bring him in for me?"

"I think so." Sharon said, nodding her head.

Lowri groaned and put her face into her hands. "This just makes it worse."

"No, it doesn't. it just adds complications." Nat said firmly.

"Captain Rogers was going to go after Barnes anyway. We knew that." Sharon said.

"You're right." Lowri said, she pressed her lips together and sighed as she looked down at her almost finished food and she felt full. "Is everyone done with their food?"

"I was done a long time ago." Nat replied quickly, she was the first to stand dump her tray at the cleaning station with Sharon and Lowri behind her. They made their way back to the large control room and the atmosphere hadn't changed in their absence.

"Jones!" Ross bellowed from across the room. Lowri pulled a face at Nat as Sharon headed further into the room.

"What does he want now?" Lowri asked with a sigh, she headed further down the room.

Ross was waiting for her impatiently.

"We're bringing Rogers in." Ross said as soon as Lowri was in ear shot.

"I know. I was in the room when they were handcuffed." Lowri replied.

"That's not what I canned you down here for, no, your pal Rhodes is on the line, some angry German men are shouting at him and he's asked for you to translate." Ross said, ignoring Lowri's reply.

Lowri nodded her head and took the phone from Ross' outstretched hand.

"Hello?" She asked, pressing the phone to her ear.

"Ri, thank God." Rhodey breathed out. "They put me on clean up and I've got some guy shouting at me, I guess in German, but I have no idea what he's saying. I figured I'd have you translate instead of their translator monkeys."

"Well, they have none of those here, just me." Lowri said with a small smile. "Alright, pass me over."

"I'm calling from the suit." Rhodey said.

"Well, open up and put me on loud speaker." Lowri said with a smile.

"Will do." Rhodey said. Lowri heard the suit open up and then she heard the angry man and she smiled.

"It's not German." Lowri said with a laugh. "It's Macedonian."

"Please tell me you speak that too." Rhodey pleaded.

"Of course I do." Lowri replied with a laugh. "He's telling you to move your metal ass otherwise you're gonna get crushed by a skip."

The Romanian who had been shouting at Rhodey stopped shouting and listened to her, then eh demanded to know who was speaking.

"My name is Lowri Jones, I'm currently at the Berlin Command Centre. The man in front of you is Colonel James Rhodes. He's a good guy, but he doesn't understand you." Lowri said quickly.

"How do I tell him that clean up needs to be done as soon as possible?" Rhodey asked.

"Like this." Lowri said, before launching into the translation.

"I don't even know why I'm on clean up." Rhodey said with a sigh. "I don't even speak the language."

"You'll be fine." Lowri said, "Just remember, you can call me up if you want any help."

"Alright will do." Rhodey said, he hung up and Lowri put the phone down. Ross was standing a few feet away from her, clearing watching her and listening on the conversation.

Lowri walked past him and headed for Nat, who had now sat back at their old table. Lowri joined her.

"Who called?" Nat asked as Lowri sat down.

"Rhodey. He's been put on clean up and he had a Romanian man shouting at him so he called up for me." Lowri replied.

"Did he mention Steve?" Nat asked, shifting her eyes around the room.

Lowri shook her head.

"No, Ross was listening on the entire conversation. Rhodey is smart enough not to talk about Steve to me on a phone connected to the government." Lowri said, she locked eyes with Nat. "What sort of situation are we in now?"

"I have no idea." Nat said slowly. "We gotta look as though we're on this side, that's the only way we're gonna get out of this with all our heads."

"That's a bit dark, Nat." Lowri remarked. She looked around them with sad eyes. "But I kinda agree. This is a dangerous situation and Steve is gonna hate us."

"Steve has gone off the rails, Ri. He's gone too far for us to help him. He's coming here, under guard and he's locked up. They'll probably call him an enemy of the state." Nat said quietly.

"But that doesn't mean much." Lowri pointed out, her mind went back to 1946 when Howard was made an enemy of the state when his 'toys' were being sold to the enemies of the allies, just after the war. "We can work around that, from the inside."

"There's too much to risk, Ri, maybe this is it. Maybe this is the end of the Avengers." Nat hissed.

A man walked towards them slowly, too slowly to just be walking normally. Was he listening in on their conversation?

"I don't get what you're saying, Nat," Lowri said loudly, she leant back in the chair and narrowed her eyes at Nat. For a moment, Nat's eyes widened as she waited to hear what else Lowri said. "The food here isn't that bad. You're just so picky. You should have tried the food here when we infiltrated Berlin in 1948."

Nat relaxed and let out a laugh as the men walked by them.

"That was ration packs though. They _look _horrible, but they can be nice." Nat replied.

"You're thinking of modern-day ration packs, back then… everything was boiled. And when you had to boil it again… ew." Lowri said, screwing up her face at the memory.

The man walked on and Lowri shared a look with Nat, they definitely needed to be more careful.

An hour passed of agonising waiting and watching. Nat and Lowri were still being watched and people occasionally passed by them slowly and closely, trying to listen in on their conversation but they were too careful.

Tony was still in the glass office, getting more and more agitated by the second as whoever was talking kept on talking.

There was a calmness in the room as clean-up was finalised in Romania and in Vienna, it was time for Ross and his men to relax but as soon they began to relax, everything happened at once.

The talk on the radio got louder as the police convey supporting the vehicles holding Steve, Sam, Bucky and the unknown approached.

Then, the vehicles were all pulling into the large open space in the centre of the building and the monitors at the back of the room was showing them all pulling up.

"Let's get this show on the road." Ross said, he passed by Lowri and Nat's table, clapping his hands together and three guards tailing him, Sharon joined him and they headed out the control room.

Lowri moved quickly, she headed down to the back of the room and looked at the monitor displaying the vehicles. She watched Ross stepped into the camera view with Sharon flanking him. The truck had arrived first and the unloading process began as the black van holding Steve, Sam and the unknown pulled up.

The back van came to a stop and the door opened as Ross, Sharon and the three armed guards came to a stop. Steve got out first and he surveyed the scene before looking at the truck, and as he did, Bucky was wheeled out in his containment cell. Sam climbed out after Steve and then, to Lowri's utter surprise, Prince T'Challa climbed down after Sam.

The three of them walked towards Ross and Sharon, there was no audio and Lowri is terrible at lip reading, but she still tried to see what they were saying.

The conversation looked slightly heated but then Ross began leading everyone away from the vehicles while Bucky was being wheeled away from the group in a different direction.

Lowri watched on the monitors as they approached the room and her heart began thudding. Steve still doesn't know that she's alive.

She stayed at the back of the room as the group entered the room, Sharon came up to her with Ross just in front.

"I haven't told him." Sharon said quietly as she walked past. Lowri knew exactly what Sharon was talking about, she swallowed and took a deep breath in before stepping off and headed for the front of the room.

Ahead of her, she saw Steve, Sam and Prince T'Challa enter the room.

Prince T'Challa walked straight past her without seeing her and Steve and Sam loitered near the entrance, just as Tony stepped out of the glass office, Lowri stopped at the back corner.

"No. Romania was not Accords-sanctioned. Colonel Rhodes is supervising clean up." Tony said into his phone. Tony stepped down, probably with a hard look on his face and Nat came over and looked at Steve and Sam with both hands on her hips. "Consequences? You bet there'll be consequences. Obviously, you can quote me on that, because I just said it. Anything else? Thank you, sir."

"Consequences?" Steve asked slowly.

"Secretary Ross wants you both prosecuted. Had to give him something." Tony said, he wheeled around and began walking away from Steve and Sam with Nat just in front of him.

"I'm not getting that shield back, am I?" Steve called after them.

"Technically, it's the government's property." Nat called back, they passed by Lowri. "Wings too."

"That's cold." Sam said, pulling a face.

"Warmer than jail." Tony remarked. He and Nat made their way into the depths of the room and as Steve turned to face Sam with a look of disbelief, Lowri stepped towards them.

Sam was looking down at the floor with his lips pursed, he wasn't happy. Steve was facing away from him and Lowri with his hand to his face. Sam looked up as Lowri approached and he had a look of complete disbelief.

"Jesus Christ." Sam breathed out as Lowri neared, he nudged Steve.

"Surprise." Lowri said as she came to a stop. Steve whirled back around to look, his eyes widened and then he stepped towards her quickly and he pulled her into his arms tightly.

"Lowri." Steve breathed out. He held her tightly and she hugged him back.

"I thought you were dead." Sam said slowly, as Lowri and Steve stepped back, Lowri looked at Sam.

"I did die." Lowri confirmed, she smiled a small smile. "I died for half an hour. I came back around in the back of an ambulance and they took me to a hospital. I was there for about three hours, I think. I caught a flight here."

"Half an hour?" Sam asked sharply. "You actually died for half an hour?"

"Yes." Lowri said firmly. She took in a deep breath and looked up at Steve. "Now, do you want to tell me why on earth both of you were in Romania seeking out Bucky?"

"It had to be us to bring him in." Steve said. Lowri looked up at him and shook her head. "You don't agree?"

"No." Lowri said, she closed her eyes and breathed in.

"I think you should step away from this business." Lowri said before opening her eyes again.

"You didn't step back when Howard was condemned for things he didn't do." Steve pointed out.

"There is one big difference, Howard was not a weakness of mine." Lowri said, Steve looked at her. "You said so yourself, when Bucky's name was said in Lagos, you were like a 16-year-old kid again. You can't help it."

Steve looked at Lowri with narrowed eyes and he clenched his fists, Sam took a step to the side to avoid the argument.

"I have weaknesses too. Everyone does." Lowri said firmly, Steve began to relax slightly but he was still eyeing her up. "I'm not saying that you shouldn't stand by Bucky, he is your friend and you and him have been through so much together and it's only right that you fight for him. And I hate to see him like this, not himself, a tortured soul."

"So, what do you want me to do?" Steve asked quickly.

"Stay out of it." Lowri said quietly. She lowered her voice even more. "Don't think you can bring him in for me, I don't think it was him."

"So, you agree with me?" Steve asked, he took a step closer to her so that they were almost touching. "At least on small scale? You know Bucky is innocent."

"On a small scale, yes." Lowri replied, she looked up at him, aware that Ross could be watching them speak and could interrupt them at any time but she missed Steve and she missed being this close to him. "I've tried to get Ross to go easy on him, but it's not easy."

"It seems like the world is against us on this one." Steve said, he took a small step from her.

"It seems like it is." Lowri said, she dropped her eyes to the floor. "You won't stand back from this will you?"

"No." Steve said firmly. He looked down at her with half a smile on his face. "And if I ask you to keep out of this, you'll say no too, right?"

Lowri nodded her head and smiled.

"We're a team, Steve." Lowri said softly. "If you say no, then I say no."

At this, Lowri took herself away from Steve before she said something that would probably incriminate herself, she walked back over to Nat, who was waiting for her at the table. Lowri looked down at her feet as she approached the table, she was berating herself for not telling Steve about her pregnancy but she knew this was not the moment.

"What did he say?" Nat asked.

"I told him to stay out of this." Lowri said as she sat down. "And he reminded me that when a friend of ours got into some trouble and I helped him, it's almost the same situation then as now."

"So, he's being stubborn." Nat said with a sigh, she looked at the glass office and saw Steve sit down. "This is going to be a long day."

"It's already a long day." Lowri said, she spied Tony walk into the glass office. "I just want a bed. Today can't be any longer."

"Me too, but I don't think we're their favourites at the moment, I doubt they're gonna give us beds." Nat said, she crossed her arms over her chest and she looked over at the glass office, where Tony and Steve sat at the table, talking. "I wonder what they're talking about."

"Probably the Accords." Lowri replied, she turned her head to look. At first glance, it looked pretty calm in the glass office but then they both looked at her and looked away sharply. Were they talking about her?

"They'll probably find a way to rip each other's heads off." Nat put in.

Lowri looked away from the glass office, suddenly feeling sick to her stomach.

"Just tell me when one of them storms out of the office." Lowri said glumly.

"Whatever you and Steve have between you, you can't let it go because of this." Nat said, wheeling around to look at Lowri. "You two will work whatever this is out and if you don't, then who am I gonna ship?"

"Oh my God, Nat. You know how to make me laugh." Lowri said, laughing. "You can start shipping you and Banner when he comes back."

"If." Nat corrected her. "If he comes back."

"He will." Lowri said firmly, she glanced at Nat. And then she heard the sound of angry footsteps and Lowri snapped her head to the glass office where she spied Steve storming from the glass office with a hard look on his face.

Lowri quickly glanced at Nat to gauge her reaction, then turned to watch where Steve was heading, which was right for them, he had an intense look on his face and for a second, Lowri was worried.

"Did you know about Wanda being confirmed to the compound?" Steve asked quickly, he glanced from Nat to Lowri and then back to Nat once he caught sight of her look of guilt. "Nat."

"I knew about it." Nat said slowly. "It's just so we can sort through these Accords and this _long _day without any more incidents happening."

"But Wanda is not a bomb about to explode." Lowri said quickly, she turned to Nat. "What was you and Tony thinking locking her up?"

"We're thinking about keeping our profiles low so that we can get through this." Nat insisted.

"She's a kid." Steve said slowly.

"She's not a kid, Steve. She's a young woman. And she's not alone, Vision is with her and she's not going to be bored." Nat replied.

Lowri pushed herself to her feet and looked from Steve to Nat.

"Excuse me." She said before walking off.

She headed out of the large control room and into the nearest ablutions. She locked herself into a stall and sat on top of the toilet lid with her head in her hands. Her head was hurting, but it wasn't a physical pain, it was a mental pain. What's happening to their team? Sam and Steve are almost off the rails, Tony's come out of retirement and he and Nat worked together to lock Wanda in the compound, Rhodey is seemingly on the government's side whole heartedly and Lowri can't even remember the last time she had some sleep.

* * *

**Thanks all for reading!**

**Read, Review, Follow & Favourite!**


	11. Chapter 11

I'm back!

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap_

_At this, Lowri took herself away from Steve before she said something that would probably incriminate herself, she walked back over to Nat, who was waiting for her at the table. Lowri looked down at her feet as she approached the table, she was berating herself for not telling Steve about her pregnancy but she knew this was not the moment._

_"What did he say?" Nat asked._

_"I told him to stay out of this." Lowri said as she sat down. "And he reminded me that when a friend of ours got into some trouble and I helped him, it's almost the same situation then as now."_

_"So, he's being stubborn." Nat said with a sigh, she looked at the glass office and saw Steve sit down. "This is going to be a long day."_

_"It's already a long day." Lowri said, she spied Tony walk into the glass office. "I just want a bed. Today can't be any longer."_

_"Me too, but I don't think we're their favourites at the moment, I doubt they're gonna give us beds." Nat said, she crossed her arms over her chest and she looked over at the glass office, where Tony and Steve sat at the table, talking. "I wonder what they're talking about."_

_"Probably the Accords." Lowri replied, she turned her head to look. At first glance, it looked pretty calm in the glass office but then they both looked at her and looked away sharply. Were they talking about her?_

_"They'll probably find a way to rip each other's heads off." Nat put in._

_Lowri looked away from the glass office, suddenly feeling sick to her stomach._

_"Just tell me when one of them storms out of the office." Lowri said glumly._

_"Whatever you and Steve have between you, you can't let it go because of this." Nat said, wheeling around to look at Lowri. "You two will work whatever this is out and if you don't, then who am I gonna ship?"_

_"Oh my God, Nat. You know how to make me laugh." Lowri said, laughing. "You can start shipping you and Banner when he comes back."_

_"If." Nat corrected her. "If he comes back."_

_"He will." Lowri said firmly, she glanced at Nat. And then she heard the sound of angry footsteps and Lowri snapped her head to the glass office where she spied Steve storming from the glass office with a hard look on his face._

_Lowri quickly glanced at Nat to gauge her reaction, then turned to watch where Steve was heading, which was right for them, he had an intense look on his face and for a second, Lowri was worried._

_"Did you know about Wanda being confirmed to the compound?" Steve asked quickly, he glanced from Nat to Lowri and then back to Nat once he caught sight of her look of guilt. "Nat."_

_"I knew about it." Nat said slowly. "It's just so we can sort through these Accords and this long day without any more incidents happening."_

_"But Wanda is not a bomb about to explode." Lowri said quickly, she turned to Nat. "What was you and Tony thinking locking her up?"_

_"We're thinking about keeping our profiles low so that we can get through this." Nat insisted._

_"She's a kid." Steve said slowly._

_"She's not a kid, Steve. She's a young woman. And she's not alone, Vision is with her and she's not going to be bored." Nat replied._

_Lowri pushed herself to her feet and looked from Steve to Nat._

_"Excuse me." She said before walking off._

_She headed out of the large control room and into the nearest ablutions. She locked herself into a stall and sat on top of the toilet lid with her head in her hands. Her head was hurting, but it wasn't a physical pain, it was a mental pain. What's happening to their team? Sam and Steve are almost off the rails, Tony's come out of retirement and he and Nat worked together to lock Wanda in the compound, Rhodey is seemingly on the government's side whole heartedly and Lowri can't even remember the last time she had some sleep._

* * *

Lowri finally came out of the ablutions and re-joined them all in the large control room.

By now, everyone had stopped their work as it was clear something was going on. The monitors in the room all showed one thing, Bucky Barnes in his containment unit. It was his psych evaluation.

Steve and Sam were on their own in the glass office but their monitor inside was not showing what the other monitors were showing. They were ignoring their monitors and watching the others.

Lowri stepped further into the room with her eyes locked on the monitors, Bucky was locked in his containment cell with a man in front of him. He wore a doctor's lab coat; he must have been the doctor to conduct the psych evaluation.

"_Do you mind if I sit_?" The doctor asked, he laid out his paperwork in front of him and opened up a tablet before sitting down, he took a few seconds to set everything up and then he began typing. "_Your first name is James_?"

Lowri glanced at the glass office and saw that Steve and Sam were struggling to find out what was being said. Lowri walked into the glass office and Steve turned his head to look at her with mild concern before he turned back to the monitor outside. Sam was sat at the table and she walked around him and offered him a smile.

On the table was a series of buttons on the table Sam sat at. There was one that Lowri deemed would do the job and pressed it, audio and visual from the monitors outside began playing on the monitor inside the glass office. She smiled at her own success, she could barely understand technology at the best of times.

"_I'm not here to judge you, I just want to ask you a few questions. Do you know where you are, James?_" The doctor asked, he looked down at his notes and looked up when Bucky didn't reply. Steve looked around the room and locked his eyes on her. He gave her a thankful look and then he looked back at the screen. Lowri stepped across the room and stopped beside him, she slipped her hand into his and he squeezed her hand.

"_I can't help you if you don't talk to me, James._" The doctor pressed on at Bucky.

"_My name is Bucky._" Bucky said slowly. Steve's hand tightened on hers slightly.

The doors to the glass office opened again and this time, Sharon stepped into the room with papers in her hands. She passed on to Sam and he read it quickly.

"Bird costume?" Sam asked out loud, he looked up at Sharon. "Oh, come on."

"Hey, I didn't write it up." Sharon admitted, she put her hands up and then she looked at Lowri and they locked eyes momentarily.

"Why would the task force even release this photo to begin with?" Steve asked, he dropped Lowri's hand and turned back to the table and reached for the press release photo of Bucky that was released to the media.

"To get the word out?" Sharon asked, "To involve as many eyes possible?"

"Right." Steve said, he dropped the photo onto the table. "It's a good way to flush a guy out of hiding. Set off a bomb, get your picture taken. Gey seven billion people looking for the Winter Solider."

"So, you think someone framed Bucky to find him?" Lowri asked, looking up at him. "How would someone frame him like this?"

"Steve, we looked for the guy for two years and we found nothing." Sam said.

"And people have searched for a lot longer and they found nothing except for dead ends." Lowri added. "The Winter Soldier was a ghost for decades, only reappearing when he was needed."

"Even if someone framed him, it doesn't guarantee that whoever framed him would get him in their custody." Sharon pointed out. "It guarantees that we will get him."

"Yeah." Steve said slowly, he turned back to the monitor with a strange look in his eye. Lowri shared another look with Sharon before she turned back to the screen too.

"_Tell me, Bucky, you've seen a great deal, haven't you_?" The doctor asked.

"_I don't wanna talk about it._" Bucky said grumpily, he looked way from the doctor with hatred in his eyes.

"_You fear that if you open your mouth, the horrors might never stop. But don't worry, we only have to talk about one horror._" The doctor said.

Lowri's ears pricked up and then her stomach dropped the next second. That is not something a doctor who is conducting a full psychological evaluation would say to their patient. Lowri had watched enough of them to know how they work.d

The next second, all electrics cut out.

"Shit." Lowri cussed.

Sharon looked out of the glass window and she watched the scene for a split second before she turned back to the room.

"Sub-level five, east wing." Sharon said quickly.

Steve and Sam turned to each other and shared a look before Sam bolted from the office.

Steve paused and looked down at Lowri, he stepped closer and she closed the gap. Steve kissed her but she took a step back a few seconds later and looked up at him.

"Go. Find him." Lowri said and then Steve ran from the office after Sam.

"I'm guessing the back-up generators won't kick in for a few minutes." Lowri said quickly. "They need as much time as we can get for them."

"So, you're with us?" Sharon asked, together, they fell into step together and left the glass office, they entered the mayhem and then an alarm sounded and a man speaking in a calm voice sounded on the sound system to tell everyone to remain calm in German.

"Of course I am. Without a doubt." Lowri said, she dropped her voice and looked at Sharon. "I love Steve and I know he loves Bucky."

"Evacuate all civilians! Get me a perimeter around the building and gunships in the air!" Ross ordered as Lowri caught up with Nat and Tony. Sharon was just behind them, having hung back to talk with Ross.

"What's the matter?" Lowri hissed as she fell into step with Tony and Nat.

"Barnes escaped. He's gone rogue." Tony replied, he glanced sideways at her with a hard look on his face.

"Please tell me you brought a suit." Nat said quickly, she looked at Tony expectedly.

"Sure did." Tony replied quickly. "It's lovely Tom Ford, three-piece, two button. I'm an active non-combatant."

Nat let out a groan and she shared a look with Nat.

"Follow me." Sharon said quickly as she pulled up in front of Tony, Nat and Lowri. She led them down a darkened hall quickly.

"We need a plan." Lowri hissed.

The civilians had already been evacuated from these parts and it was all quiet, but is where Bucky should be.

"He's down by reception. There's no civilians there." Sharon replied.

"I'll go first." Tony said, "I've got a little something up my sleeve. You three station yourselves up that way in case things don't go the right way."

Tony pulled ahead of them and stepped out while the three others stationed themselves around the room.

"_We're in position._" Nat hissed.

Tony came out from behind the wall with his right hand armed in his Iron Man suit, he shot a sonic blast at Bucky, who had stalked out into the open area with a hard look on his face and his fists clenched.

The sonic blast stunned Bucky momentarily, giving Tony enough time to move closer and flash a bright light in Bucky's face, stunning him again. Bucky crouched and covered his eyes with his human hand. As Tony rushed at him, Bucky rose to his feet and met Tony with a hand gun in his hand.

Tony blocked Bucky's hit and grabbed the wrist of the gun hand and he covered the end of the barrel using his Iron Man hand. Bucky pressed the trigger and shot the gun, for a moment, Tony was stunned. He ripped the barrel off the gun and hit Bucky across the face with it.

Bucky elbowed Tony in the face and then punched him so hard that Tony went flying across the room.

Sharon took the small lull to run in and boot Bucky in the chest, she kicked him again and ducked Bucky's hit.

Nat came in and quickly kneed him in the stomach, he went flying backwards and Nat punched him in the thigh. She rolled away as Sharon kicked Bucky across the face and she turned to repeat but Bucky caught her by the thigh and flipped her onto a table that crashed to the floor, Sharon with it.

Nat attacked Bucky from behind, she somehow managed to get him into a headlock using her thighs, she brought her elbow down on his head repeatedly until he slammed her onto another table with his metal hand to her throat.

Lowri threw herself from behind the wall upon seeing Nat pinned to the table and she lit her hands alight, she kicked Bucky in the side to get his attention and he stumbled to the side, leaving Nat to gasp in air and roll from the table.

Bucky righted himself and took a swipe at Lowri, she ducked and tried to get her own hit in but he was too fast. He approached her too quickly, backing her up against the wall, she tried to duck under his arm but he grabbed her by the throat and slammed her against the wall with his metal hand.

Lowri's lit hands had no effect on his metal hand at all, she could feel his grip getting stronger and stronger. She gasped for breath.

"Bucky!" Lowri gasped out.

Bucky's eyes searched hers and for a moment, Lowri thought that she was through to him and that he was going to let her go but then he dropped his gaze from her and looked at her arms, the bracelets on Lowri's wrists were visible under her sleeves.

His arm went across her chest with his human hand clenched resting on her shoulder. His intense glare was back on her.

"You don't need these." Bucky hissed; he ripped the bracelet from her right wrist painfully. She yelped as he did so but he didn't bat an eyelid, he ripped the other bracelet off and then as his eyes met hers once more, his arm was gone from her chest and his metal hand was at her throat, the two metal bracelets lying broken and discarded on the floor at their feet.

Her breathing became rapid and shallow, her eyesight began dimming and she could feel herself slipping away.

Suddenly, he was gone from her and she fell to the floor, gripping at her neck and gasping for air.

She saw T'Challa brush past her as he chased after Bucky.

Lowri stumbled to her feet and chased after T'Challa and Bucky but she lost sight of them, she quickly chose a way to follow and came upon the lift with the doors busted open, she peered down the empty shaft and she spied Steve's jacket. Her stomach churned uncomfortably. Was he hurt? Did he have a run in with this crazy Bucky?

Where is he?

She continued up the corridor and at the end there was a doorway with the door hanging ajar, she raced through the door and found there was stairs just inside the room. She heard the sound of a helicopter engine starting up and Lowri ran up the stairs.

Her chest was aching but she ignored it, she raced up the stairs and saw that the door at the top of the stairs had been shoved open, the helicopter sounded louder.

She could see the rotor blades spinning fast and then she pushed her way through the door and was met with more steps. She threw herself up them, taking two steps at a time. Lowri stopped at the sight of Steve pulling the helicopter back to the building.

Bucky was inside the cockpit of the helicopter with a determined look on his face and Lowri knew it was trouble. Steve looked rather impressive by keeping that helicopter from flying off. Lowri clutched at the handrail and watched, filled with horror, as Bucky pushed the control stick to the left and the helicopter veered towards Steve.

Steve threw himself sideways back onto the roof with his hands over his head as the body of the helicopter hit the ground where he had just been, the rotor blades pushed the body of the helicopter into an uncontrollable spin, going around and around, bringing the tail end with it.

Lowri cried out at the sight of the tail end moving very quickly towards Steve, but he didn't hear her over the roar of the now-broken engine, Steve ducked just in time, narrowly missing the tail end, and he flattened himself on the landing pad, which was now getting shredded to pieces around Steve by the tail end.

"Steve!" Lowri yelled as the dust settled around them and the helicopter came to an eventual stop, teetering on the edge of the building, Steve was still pressed to the floor, covered in the dust and debris from the landing pad but he looked up sharply at the sound of her voice.

He peered at her through the dust but then a metal hand shot out of the glass window of the cockpit and gripped Steve's throat, pulling him to the already unstable helicopter with a hard yank.

Steve pressed his hands against the helicopter window, in an attempt to get out of the choke hold Bucky had him in but all he did was push the helicopter that little bit over the edge so the helicopter began tilting backwards and backwards, taking Steve with it.

Lowri cried out his name again without meaning to, she began running over to him, to help but she didn't know what she could do against a helicopter.

Steve planted his feet on the landing pad but he still tilted with the helicopter, he had one hand on the window and the other hand on his throat. As the helicopter tilted backwards, Steve pressed both of his hands to the window but he still fell with the helicopter.

It happened so quickly, Lowri didn't reach him in time. Lowri stood on the edge of the building, breathing fast, staring with astonishment at the helicopter as it slowly sunk into the river just below the building. Tears came to her eyes as bubbles stopped bubbling on the surface.

Lowri searched the water, blinking through the tears, looking for Steve. Her heart was racing and the silence that now surrounded her was almost deafening.

Then, she saw two heads break the surface of the water some way down the river and she felt relief take hold. She looked up to the sky, thankful of Steve's ability not to die, no matter how hard he is almost killed.

Lowri turned from the river and she collapsed her knees as she took a silent inventory of what hurt and what didn't hurt. Now, she began feeling the soreness from her neck and from her wrists.

A horrible thought stuck in her head.

The bracelets that Bucky had struck from her wrists had been crafted by two S. H. I. E. L. D. agents, they were coded to her DNA and they helped give her some control over her now even-stronger fire. How would she cope without them now? They were her safety blanket; she knew she could go out and do no accidental harm with them on. What if she loses control over her own fire?

"Ri?" Nat's voice sounded far off. Lowri could barely hear her. "Lowri! Oh, my God. Are you okay? What happened here? Ri?"

Nat skidded to her knees beside Lowri and pressed her shoulders back so they were eye to eye.

"Nat?" Lowri asked, blinking through the tears. Her eyes landed on Nat, who was in front of her, searching her eyes with a worried look.

"What happened here? Where's Steve? Where's Barnes?" Nat asked quickly.

"They're both in the water." Lowri answered, Nat pushed herself to her feet and peered over the edge of the building. "Bucky was in the chopper, about to take off but Steve stopped him so Bucky turned the chopper onto Steve, almost killing him. Bucky grabbed Steve and Steve tried to push him off but that just pushed the chopper over the edge. It fell, they fell."

"They escaped." Nat muttered under her breath. And just in time too, three armed men stormed the roof with their weapons raised but paused when they saw Nat on the edge and Lowri in tears on her knees. They dropped their weapons, reported into their radios and moved on.

Nat turned to watch them leave and then she breathed out heavily.

"Come on." Nat said, she helped Lowri to her feet and they walked back inside, down the two flights of stairs and through the halls until they came to the large control room again.

Hell was calmer than inside the control room. Ross was spitting out his orders to anyone who was in a five-foot radius, everyone was wary and some people looked tired and beat up.

Tony was inside the little glass office, nursing his wounds but Nat and Lowri moved to their old table near the coffee and tea machine and rested there. They got themselves a drink before they moved into the glass office, offering Tony a shot of expresso.

Just as Lowri sank into one of the black spinny chairs, relieved to sit down on something comfortable and looking forward to a small chance to relax, someone stormed into the glass office, completely destroying her calm aura.

"I don't suppose you have any idea where they are?" A booming voice demanded. Lowri looked up from her cup of tea to see that Secretary Ross was eyeing her up angrily.

"We will." Tony put in, he was pacing the room after downing his shot of expresso, he was rubbing at his wounds and thinking hard, he was also talking to his new AI, Friday, to start the aerial reconnaissance.

"I wasn't talking to you." Secretary Ross snapped. Tony looked wounded but Secretary Ross didn't notice. He was still glaring at Lowri as if this entire mess was all her fault. "Do you know where Rogers, Barnes and Wilson are?"

"Not a clue." Lowri replied far too quickly for his liking.

"You're lying." Secretary Ross said as soon as she finished talking. "You know where they've gone. But you won't tell us because you're still loyal to Rogers. You can't be trusted."

"Then why are you asking me if you don't trust me?" Lowri snapped, she rose to her feet and faced him. "Why am I here instead of with them? I don't know where they are or where they are going or what they're planning next."

"GSG 9's got the border covered; recon's flying 24/7. They'll get a hit." Tony said as he stepped forward to diffuse the tension between Lowri and Secretary Ross. "We'll handle it."

"You don't get it, Stark, it's not yours to handle." Secretary Ross said, he drew his shoulders back and looked down at Tony. "It's clear you can't be objective. I'm putting special ops on this."

"What happens when the shooting starts?" Nat asked quickly, she looked up at Secretary Ross and he looked down at her. "What, do you kill Steve Rogers?"

"If we're provoked." Secretary Ross said calmly. Lowri's stomach churned uncomfortably and she sank back into her chair and nursed her cup of tea. "Barnes should have been eliminated but because of Rogers, there are dead people who would be alive right now. Feel free to check my math."

Tony dropped into a seat opposite Lowri and Secretary Ross loomed over him.

"All due respect, you're not gonna solve this with boys and bullets, Ross." Tony said with a sigh, he looked up at Secretary Ross. "You gotta let us bring them in."

"And how would that end any differently than the last time?" Ross asked with a sneer.

"Because this time I won't be wearing loafers and a silk shirt." Tony snipped back at him. "72 hours, guaranteed."

"36 hours." Secretary Ross said, he looked away from Tony and looked at Lowri with his eyes narrowed, he waited until Lowri looked up so that they locked eyes. "And you have no part in this."

Lowri's eyebrow went up and she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Who says I'm getting involved?" Lowri asked, leaning back in her seat. She was most definitely getting involved, but she wasn't going to tell that to Mr Killjoy.

"You and Rogers got this strange thing going on." Secretary Ross began, he took a step closer to her. "You're a hindrance, a pain. You'll only get in the way. And if you do, I'm throwing you in jail for a very long time."

Lowri pressed her lips together and looked up at him with an icy look in her eyes.

"So, you best stay on this base where I can have eyes on you at all times until this mess is sorted out." Secretary Ross said, he stepped off and headed for the glass doors. "Barnes. Rogers. Wilson." He called out as he walked away.

Lowri cussed out loud as soon as the doors had shut behind him. She leant forward and drummed her fingers on the arm of her chair as her eyes darted around the room.

"I always knew he never liked me." Lowri said.

"That's pretty obvious." Nat said almost jokingly.

"I'm getting out of here." Lowri said, she pushed herself to her feet and she left the glass office, she didn't follow Secretary Ross, instead she headed into the ablutions to splash cold water onto her face to calm down.

Shortly after Lowri entered the bathroom, Sharon Carter stepped in after her and headed for the stall, where the cameras were out of range. Lowri followed her towards the stalls after catching her eye.

"I heard Ross call in his strongest guys to manage you if you get angry." Sharon said.

"What am I, the Hulk?" Lowri asked rather sharply, she breathed in deeply and closed her eyes at the same time, then she opened them and looked at Sharon. "I'm sorry, continue."

"He's scared. He just wants to bring in Rogers, Wilson and Barnes without any more dramas." Sharon said with a sigh. "And he's willing to let Secretary Ross to lock you away until it's done. So, we gotta get you out of here before those guys get here."

"I like your thinking, Sharon." Lowri said, she looked around the room. "I'm guessing they've got eyes on me everywhere and in a few seconds, maybe a minute, a female operative working for either Little Ross or Big Ross will come through those doors to check up on us. How am I gonna get away? Eyes are on me."

"I've already planned it out." Sharon said quietly, she reached into her pocket and pulled out a small device that Lowri had used many times, a Photo-Veil, used to disguise the wearer into someone else. She pulled out her car keys and held both items out to Lowri. "Here's my keys. I've got a friend in storage waiting to hand over Rogers' and Wilson's gear and I'm sure you know what this one is."

Lowri took both the keys and Photo-Veil and then attached the Photo-Veil. Lowri and Sharon quickly swapped jackets and then Sharon held up a phone.

"In here is Rogers' coordinates. He already got in touch with me to find out if you're alright." Sharon said as Lowri took the phone. "He said that he was planning on leaving the country, but he didn't say where."

Lowri pocketed the phone, held the car keys tightly and activated the Photo-Veil, she turned back to look at Sharon and found that Sharon didn't look like Sharon, instead she looked like Lowri.

"Huh. This is odd." Lowri said, her voice coming out like Sharon's.

Sharon nodded her head and then walked towards the sinks and washed her hands before leaving the ablutions. Lowri followed shortly and saw herself standing across the room, talking with low tones with Nat.

Lowri quickly headed out of the room.

No one stopped her or asked for her ID. Once again, the wonderful agents that had once worked for her organisation didn't let her down. She finally reached the underground car park where all the employees parked their cars. She scanned the rows for Sharon's car, a few matched up with the badge on the keys but she eventually found the car halfway down.

Lowri slid into the car, strapped herself in and started the car. Storage was in the same place as Lowri remembered but the building was completely new and not the old structure she knew.

There was a large-ish man sitting outside the building, on a little wall, with a mug in his hands wearing dirty overalls but he stood up with Lowri drove closer and he opened the garage door so she could drive in.

He stepped closer to the car so Lowri rolled the window down and looked up at him.

"You Sharon Carter?" The man asked, looking down at Lowri. She did not for a second doubt the Photo-Veil.

"Yes." Lowri replied, she swung the door open and got out. "Do you have what I want?"

"Yeah." The man said, he stepped back as Lowri got out of the car. "You can pop the trunk."

Lowri watched him every second as he put Sam's Falcon suit into the boot and then he put Steve's suit and shield on top of Sam's things. He was wary of her eyes on him but she was cautious. He might be Sharon's friend but someone higher up could have paid him to add a little something extra to her car.

"Alright, you're done." He said as he closed the boot and stepped back.

"Thanks." Lowri said, she watched him retreat from the car, then she got back into the car and drove off. As she neared the exit gate, she slowed down and held her breath. They don't normally stop and ask for ID on bases like these but she wasn't too sure of the situation left inside of the control room.

She was waved through and as soon as she was on open road, she breathed out and relaxed. She kept the Photo-Veil on until she put some miles between her and the base.

* * *

**Thanks all for reading!**

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	12. Chapter 12

**Happy Wednesday everyone! This is bit of a wordy chapter... I hope everyone enjoys!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jonrs (Lowri Jones and any other names shes uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap_

_"Huh. This is odd." Lowri said, her voice coming out like Sharon's._

_Sharon nodded her head and then walked towards the sinks and washed her hands before leaving the ablutions. Lowri followed shortly and saw herself standing across the room, talking with low tones with Nat._

_Lowri quickly headed out of the room._

_No one stopped her or asked for her ID. Once again, the wonderful agents that had once worked for her organisation didn't let her down. She finally reached the underground car park where all the employees parked their cars. She scanned the rows for Sharon's car, a few matched up with the badge on the keys but she eventually found the car halfway down._

_Lowri slid into the car, strapped herself in and started the car. Storage was in the same place as Lowri remembered but the building was completely new and not the old structure she knew._

_There was a large-ish man sitting outside the building, on a little wall, with a mug in his hands wearing dirty overalls but he stood up with Lowri drove closer and he opened the garage door so she could drive in._

_He stepped closer to the car so Lowri rolled the window down and looked up at him._

_"You Sharon Carter?" The man asked, looking down at Lowri. She did not for a second doubt the Photo-Veil._

_"Yes." Lowri replied, she swung the door open and got out. "Do you have what I want?"_

_"Yeah." The man said, he stepped back as Lowri got out of the car. "You can pop the trunk."_

_Lowri watched him every second as he put Sam's Falcon suit into the boot and then he put Steve's suit and shield on top of Sam's things. He was wary of her eyes on him but she was cautious. He might be Sharon's friend but someone higher up could have paid him to add a little something extra to her car._

_"Alright, you're done." He said as he closed the boot and stepped back._

_"Thanks." Lowri said, she watched him retreat from the car, then she got back into the car and drove off. As she neared the exit gate, she slowed down and held her breath. They don't normally stop and ask for ID on bases like these but she wasn't too sure of the situation left inside of the control room._

_She was waved through and as soon as she was on open road, she breathed out and relaxed. She kept the Photo-Veil on until she put some miles between her and the base._

* * *

Lowri pulled over and then took out the phone, she made a quick check of the van and the kit in the back of the car for any bugs or trackers then she got back into the car and climbed into the back seats where there were tinted windows on the sides and back windows.

She turned the Photo-Veil off and then called Steve.

"Steve?" Lowri asked, she leant back against the seat and crossed an arm over her chest, she drew her knees up and waited for his reply. She was anxious to hear his voice, she had seen him almost drown and even though she had seen him resurface, she was still scared.

"Lowri?" Steve asked slowly. "I thought this was Sharon's phone? Where is she?"

"She helped me get out of the Command Centre." Lowri replied quietly. "Can I see you?"

"Sure, of course you can." Steve said quickly. "What's the matter, Ri? Where are you now? Do you want me to come to you?"

"A few miles out from the Command Centre." Lowri replied. "It's easier if I tell you face to face."

"Alright. We're at a warehouse about two miles up the river. South, it's abandoned." Steve said quickly. As he spoke, Lowri pulled the phone away from her ear and drew up the maps of the local area, she spotted an old warehouse among other rundown buildings. "It's got a name on the side but I know I'll butcher it."

Lowri said the name of the place to confirm it and Steve said that was the place.

"I'll be there really soon." Lowri promised. "Like in twenty minutes. And I have a gift for you and Sam."

"There's a tunnel running alongside the warehouse. We'll meet you at the door." Steve said.

"I'll see you soon." Lowri said before hanging up. Lowri turned on the Photo-Veil once more then climbed to the front of the car, started it up and began driving.

She did a three-point-turn and made her way back down the road she had travelled up a short while ago.

In no time at all, Lowri found herself in a tunnel and a door to her left opened quickly, she turned off the Photo-Veil, pulled it off then hurried out of the car and threw herself into Steve's arms. He caught her and wrapped his arms around her tightly and she felt relief rush through her.

"Are you okay?" Lowri asked into his chest. She pushed back from him and looked him over. He had dried out and looked as normal as ever, except for a few cuts on his face and neck, he looked prefect regardless.

"Of course I am." Steve said with a smile, he tightened his grip on her, pulled her close and then he pressed his lips to hers.

Her hands called and she pulled him to her, his hands wrapped around her back and he dipped her slightly.

He pulled back with a small smile on his face.

"I can't remember the last time I kissed you like that." Steve said, he kept his eyes on her and she smiled.

"Neither can I." Lowri breathed out, she heard slow clapping and she slowly turned around as Steve looked over her head. "Oh, God."

Sam stood in the doorway, looking at them both with a smirk on his face. Lowri felt horror take root in her stomach and she looked down at the ground, her cheeks burning.

"Not what I imagined when I saw you again." Sam said, he still smiled at her. Lowri looked up and Steve dropped his arms from her. "Gimme a hug."

Lowri stepped towards him and hugged him quickly.

"I'm glad to see you're alright, Sam." Lowri said, she looked back at Steve. "At least you didn't go for a dip."

"I'm glad I didn't." Sam laughed.

"Anyway, I have your gifts, by the way." Lowri said as she walked to the back of the car, she popped the trunk and stepped to the side to let Steve and Sam see inside.

Both men began smiling widely and Steve looked at her with a look she had rarely seen on his face.

"How did you manage to get this?" Sam asked with wonder in his voice.

"Sharon Carter convinced someone to hand this stuff over to her." Lowri said.

"But how have you got it?" Sam asked, looking back at Lowri.

"I'll explain that later." Lowri said with a smirk.

"What happened back there?" Steve asked, he took a step closer to Lowri as Sam began emptying the back of the car. "What happened after we left?"

"I'll tell you everything you want to know once I get back from ditching this car." Lowri said, she took a step back and put her hand on the car. "I had a quick check of the car earlier but I think it might be bugged. It's better to be safe than sorry."

She slid into the car, started the car up and then rolled down the window. Steve came to a stop by the window just as Sam took the last of the gear out and shut the boot, he headed inside and Steve loitered.

"See you in half an hour." Lowri said, Steve reached his hand up to her face and stroked her cheek with his thumb.

As Steve took his hand away and Lowri put the Photo-Veil back on and she switched on just before driving off. She saw Steve's look and she laughed as she drove off.

Lowri headed away from the warehouse after driving for ten minutes, she parked the car up, before she got out, she configured her Photo-Veil to display another person instead of Sharon's face. She took her jacket off, took the key out and got out of the car.

She wrapped the jacket around her waist and stashed the key in her pocket next to the phone. She began walking down the pavement, leaving the car behind, she tied her hair back as she walked and whenever a helicopter flew over, she ducked her head or ducked into a doorway.

After twenty minutes of walking, Lowri finally reached the warehouse and she entered through a hole in the fence, she walked towards the tunnel and reached the door that Steve and Sam had met her at.

The door was tough to open, it was rusted at the hinges and squeaked, eventually it gave way and she stepped through, she closed it after her and stepped down the corridor. She turned the Photo-Veil off and stashed it in her pocket.

Inside the warehouse, it was dark and damp and dusty, it smelled odd too. Lowri's footsteps echoed against the walls as she walked down the long corridor. There were intervals of lights along the floor from the gaps in the walls. About halfway down the corridor, Steve stepped out and he smiled when he saw her.

Steve came down the corridor to meet her and wrapped his arms around her straight away in a tight embrace that Lowri didn't want to end because it was so nice to have a moment with just those two.

He pushed her hair back from her face and smiled at her before kissing her forehead, then taking her hand and leading her back to the gap in the wall where he came from.

The gap turned out to be a doorway and inside was a large room with a huge piece of metal machinery sitting smack bang in the middle. Sam was stood close to the doorway with his arms crossed over his chest and a stern look on his face and in the middle of the room, with his metal arm trapped in this machinery was Bucky.

Lowri came to a sudden stop and Steve looked at her sharply.

"What's the matter?" Steve asked, he took a step closer to her before looking back at Bucky, who looked up to acknowledge her presence.

Lowri's eyes were locked on Bucky and he couldn't take his eyes off her either. His eyes were very much unlike the ones that had tried to choke the life out of her only a few hours ago.

"Are you back?" Lowri asked carefully. She narrowed her eyes at him but she stayed put beside Steve, who was now looking between Lowri and Bucky with a confused look on his face.

Bucky turned his head to the side, as if he was struggling to hear her.

"There's certain words that when spoken, I become the Soldier again." Bucky said slowly, his voice came out deep and tired. "That man, that doctor, whoever he is, he found the book and said the words and I did what I was commanded to do. I had no choice. Hydra is still in my head."

Lowri took a small step towards Bucky and then another and another until she was close by him. Steve remained where he stood behind her.

"Do you remember breaking the bracelets from around my wrists?" Lowri asked as she pushed back the sleeves of her shirt to show Bucky the blue and purple mottled skin around her wrists.

"Vaguely." Bucky answered her slowly, he looked at her wrists with a sorrowful look on his face. "I am sorry if I hurt you, but I was and am right, you don't need those bracelets anymore. They were holding you back."

"Well, I haven't set anything on fire yet." Lowri said with a small smile.

She turned back around and spotted Steve, he was staring at her exposed wrists with a rueful look on his face. He looked at her and they looked eyes and she offered a small smile let him know she was no longer in pain. His eyes widened and then Lowri realised why, her neck.

Bucky looked from Lowri to Steve then back to Lowri, he let out a groan and Lowri turned back to him, he saw her neck and then looked down.

"I did that to you, didn't I?" Bucky asked slowly.

"Let's not focus on that." Lowri said firmly. She inhaled deeply and then breathed out. "Do you know this man? The one who said those words? What does he want?"

"I don't know who he is but he wanted to know about a specific mission I had in December 1991." Bucky said slowly, Lowri's eyes widened. She knew that he had been the one to kill Howard and Maria Stark. "I was sent to retrieve a serum and when I brought it back to the base in Siberia, they brought in five people."

"What happened to the serum?" Lowri asked, keeping her eyes on Bucky.

"It was given to those five people; they became Winter Soldiers." Bucky replied.

Lowri had no recollection of any more Winter Soldiers, maybe they were used one at a time to make it seem as though there was only one of them.

"There were five more?" Lowri asked slowly. "Were they strong?"

"Sometimes stronger." Bucky said, nodding his head. "I think this man wants to release them. They're worse than me, they're stealthy, quick and silent. They can take down a country in one night. Do you remember when China was in the news for exporting illegally and they suffered a blow that lasted weeks but came about in a day in 1999?"

"Yes." Lowri replied.

"It was them. China knew too many secrets about Hydra and so they were shut down. A threat was made." Bucky said.

"Our plan is to get to Siberia with a team before this guy gets there or if he's there already, we'll stop him." Steve said. "We need to get there before he wakes the other soldiers. I've called in Clint to get Wanda from the compound and to get a recruit that Sam says can be useful."

Lowri nodded her head and then she closed her eyes and turned from Bucky.

"We have less than 36 hours to get everything together." Lowri said, she opened her eyes and looked at Steve. "Secretary Ross is on your tail. He wants to bring in the bullets but Tony convinced him not too. But I can only guess that he's putting his own team together too."

"Then we need to move faster." Sam said.

Lowri pressed her lips together and then walked away from the three of them, she needed to shake off everything that was weighing her down. She walked further down the corridor until she came to another one of those gaps in the wall.

This one had a large window above waist level and tables and chairs around the room, like an old canteen. There were counters running up the sides with an old refrigerator, kettle and other kitchen appliances and utensils.

Lowri walked into the room with her head in her hands, wondering how they managed to get themselves in this position with Steve, the man who has always followed the government with his heart has now turned against them and Tony, the man who has always done what he wants is complying with them.

"Lowri?" Steve asked from behind.

Lowri dropped her hands and turned to watch Steve step into the room, he came right up to her and took her in his arms again, she didn't argue. He held her tightly.

"What happened back there?" Steve asked.

"Back in the room or back in the Command Centre?" Lowri asked quietly. She looked up at him, suddenly feeling very tired, her entire body just wanted to sleep. She still hasn't told her about the miscarriage and she knows she really should, but how does one bring up something that delicate?

"Back in the room." Steve said, he looked at her with that loving look in his eyes again.

"When Bucky escaped, Tony, Nat, Sharon and I went to fight him and I was the last one to do so. He managed to get me in a choke hold pretty quickly, that's why I'm bruised here." Lowri began, gesturing to her neck, she wanted to look away but she kept the eye contact. "And then he saw the bracelets that Maria Hill slapped on my wrists and he snapped them off. That's why my wrists are sore too."

Steve nodded his head slowly but he tightened his grip on her.

"And what happened in the Command Centre?" Steve asked.

"Tony, Nat and I nursed our wounds in that glass office and then Secretary Ross stormed in. He wanted to know if I knew where you guys are. Tony tried to step in but Ross shut him down quickly, he assumed I would know where you are because I'm still loyal to you and can't be trusted." Lowri said, "When I said that I didn't know, he called me a liar. Ross then went on to say that this issue is no longer under our control and that he was putting special ops on it. Nat and Tony tried to get him off it, he wants to solve this issue with bullets."

"So, he wants a firefight?" Steve asked.

"Something like that. But he's given Tony 36 hours to get a team together." Lowri said, she bit down on her lip. "And then he said to me that I 'have no part in this.'"

"Meaning?" Steve asked slowly.

"Meaning, if I am involved in any of this whatsoever, he will throw me in jail." Lowri replied. "Apparently, I'm a hinderance, a pain and that I will only get in the way. Then he said that I should stay on base until this is all sorted, he wanted to keep eyes on me at all times."

"Will you stay with us?" Steve asked slowly.

Lowri shook her head and closed her eyes, she didn't want to fight anymore. She was tired of fighting. Her mind was made up.

"I'm going to England." Lowri said, opening her eyes and looking up at him again. "I've still got a few contacts in their government, and their secret service. I can work in the background, get Ross off my scent and if I play things right, I can work through these Accords and ratify them."

Steve pulled her closer to him so her head rested on his chest, she let her eyes close and for a few minutes, they stood silent.

It was nice to just be with him for those few minutes.

"Let's sit down." Steve said, he loosened his arms and Lowri looked up at him. "You can help with the plan."

As Steve dropped his arms, Sam stepped into the room with a sheepish Bucky behind him, now free from his restraints.

They sat at a table to discuss the plan that Steve, Sam and Bucky had come up with.

"We need to get a car." Steve said, he looked at Sam. "I am not walking from here to the airport."

"Ri had a nice car." Sam said begrudgingly.

"It was also a nice, new car, and what do most new cars have?" Lowri asked, looking over at Sam. "Built in tracking devices. The older the car, the better."

"Exactly." Steve agreed.

"On my way here, I saw a small blue car parked up just up the road. It's small, cute and it's a good way to hide under the radar." Lowri said.

"We might target it if it's still there." Steve said.

"Captain America knows how to steal cars?" Sam asked with a smirk.

"Right, while you guys are busy making plans, I'm going to find somewhere to try and get some shut-eye." Lowri said as she stood from her chair. "I don't know about you lot but I've been awake for the past two days and I'm reaching my limit."

Lowri left the room and came across another room with benches pushed up against the walls, she chose one, took her jacket off and draped it over herself as she lay down, before long, she was dozing.

A while later, Steve came in and crouched by her.

"Lowri." He said, he shook her shoulder and she turned to look at him.

She can't have been asleep for that long.

"It's time for us to go, Ri." Steve said quietly. How long had she been asleep? "Clint is on his way with Wanda and the new recruit. He's got a chopper waiting for us at the airport. We're leaving to meet him now."

Lowri stood, shook herself out and then pulled the jacket around her shoulders. She followed Steve as he walked down the corridors, he looked stressed.

She reached for his hand and pulled him to a stop, he was about to protest but one look from Lowri told him not to say a thing. She stepped closer to him and he leant down to meet her.

They kissed and their arms wound around each other.

When they broke apart, Steve had a small smile on his face and he was slightly more relaxed. The car was waiting just outside, it was the same blue one Lowri had mentioned earlier. The gear was already in the trunk and Sam and Bucky were waiting.

Steve got into the driver's side, Lowri got into the passenger side and Sam and Bucky got in the back.

As they drove, Lowri pulled out the phone and began making encrypted messages and sending them to her contacts.

The journey to the airport took less than a quarter of an hour. Steve turned their stolen car into a parking space close by a big white van with Clint and Wanda sat in the front seats.

Lowri unbelted herself and then got out of the car the same time as Steve. Clint and Wanda got out too. Lowri walked around the car and stopped beside Steve.

"Cap." Clint said, walking around the back of the van. "Ri."

"How's retirement going?" Lowri asked as she stepped forward, Clint met her and they hugged.

"Boring." Clint replied as he stepped back from her. "I guess I wish I kept on going like you did."

"You know I wouldn't have called if I had any other choice." Steve said, he stepped forward and shook Clint's hand.

"Hey, man, you're doing me a favour." Clint said warmly. He smiled at Steve and then he grinned at Lowri, he dropped Steve's hand, took a step back and looked back at Wanda. "I owe a debt."

"Thanks for having my back." Steve said sincerely, nodding at Wanda who smiled.

"It was time for me to get off my ass." Wanda replied, smirking at Clint.

"I like the way you think." Lowri said, she stepped forward the same time as Wanda and they embraced.

"How about our other recruit?" Steve asked, turning back to Clint. Lowri and Wanda stepped back from each other and Lowri saw Wanda eye Bucky up warily. "Scott Lang?"

Clint turned from Steve and stepped towards the van, he pulled on the door and it opened.

"He's raring to go. Had to put a little bit of coffee in him but he should be good to go." Clint said as the door slid open to reveal a small man lying on the seat right by the door, asleep.

The man jumped awake as Clint opened the door with a slam. Steve threw an apprehensive look towards Sam, the one who suggested this man for their team.

"What time zone is this?" The man asked sleepily as he got out of the van, he gave a little stretch, opened his eyes a little more and yawned.

"Come on." Clint said, ushering the man further way from the van, he gave the man a little shove towards Steve and Lowri. "Come on."

The man looked up at Steve with wide eyes and a gaping mouth as Steve, being the courteous man he is, offered his hand to the man, who reached for Steve's hand and began shaking it very enthusiastically.

"Captain America!" He breathed out eagerly. His eyes never left Steve.

"Mr Lang." Steve said firmly, he seemed unable to get his hand out of Scott Lang's grip.

"It's an honour! Oh, I'm shaking your hand too long." Scott said, looking down at their hands. He dropped Steve's hand quickly and grinned, he turned and looked at Clint and Wanda. "This is Captain America! I know you too, you're great!" Scott said looking at Wanda.

Scott turned back to Steve and Lowri with wide and excited eyes.

"You too? You're awesome! My daughter loves you!" Scott said eagerly as soon as he spotted Lowri. Scott looked back at Steve and then clapped his hands onto Steve's shoulders momentarily before dropping them and taking a step back. "Jeez, ah, look, I wanna say, I know you know a lot of super people, so thinks for thanking of me. Hey man!"

"What's up, Tic Tac?" Sam asked, Lowri glanced back and saw that Sam was glaring at Scott, his arms crossed over his chest intimately.

"Uh, good to see you. Look, what happened last time when I-" Scott began but Sam cut him off real quick.

"It was a great audition but it will never happen again." Sam said.

Scott was silent as he looked from Sam back to Steve.

"Did they tell you what we're up against?" Steve asked slowly.

"Something about psycho-assassins?" Scott asked.

"We're outside the law on this one." Steve said, nodding his head. "So, if you come with us, you're a wanted man."

"Yeah, well, what else is new?" Scott asked with a small smile.

"We should get moving." Bucky said, speaking for the first time since their arrival at the airport.

"We've got a chopper lined up." Clint said as he stepped towards the wall, overlooking the large concrete area where the aircraft were lined up. "Are you flying with me, Ri?"

"No. I've got plans of my own." Lowri said firmly. Clint gave her a shock of surprise and Wanda looked at her sharply.

The speakers above their heads sparked into life with a man who spoke in a monotone voice, explaining in German that the airport was under evacuation and could all personnel inside please make their way to the fire assembly point outside of the airport.

Lowri looked up as soon as the speakers came to life, she translated the words in her head and she caught sight of Bucky and they locked eyes. He must be able to understand and speak German too, if he was a secret agent operating in many major countries, he should be able to do the same as Lowri, speak multiple languages.

"They're evacuating the airport." Bucky said.

"Stark." Steve said seriously.

"Stark?" Scott asked with a hint of worry in his voice.

Steve looked down at Lowri with a hint of determination in his voice. They both new that this would be the last time they would see each other for a long time.

"Suit up." Steve ordered.

The suits were taken from the trunk of the small blue car as Steve walked Lowri to the driver's side of the car to talk in peace without being interrupted with their hands joined. They needed to say their goodbyes.

"Are you sure you wanna go to England?" Steve asked, he bent his head and stepped closer to her, Lowri nodded her head slowly and kept her eyes on him. "Well, I'm not going to stop you. But, keep that phone on you at all times in case I call."

"I promise I will." Lowri said quietly. She looked down at their joined hands and smiled softly. She liked having simple moments with him, their lives were so fast-paced and adventurous. "Stay safe, please. For me?" She asked as she looked back up at him. He captured her lips with his and pressed her against the door of the car, he kissed her harder, as if he knew something big was going to happen.

She placed her hands on his chest and pushed back slightly after a few more seconds, no matter how much she loved him and loved kissing him, she knew they had an audience and now was not the right time to be kissing.

"I should be going." Lowri said quietly.

Steve nodded his head and kissed her one more time in reply, softly and gently.

"Someone can't get enough of me." Lowri remarked with a smirk, one of her hands rested on his cheek and looked up at him with a look filled with love. She took her hand away and he stepped back so Lowri could open the car door, she got in, adjusted the seat and mirrors and looked up at him.

He bent down and kissed her again through the open window.

"You're damn right." Steve said with a smile. "We've spent too long apart in the past, that time is over now."

"I agree. I'll see you once all of this is over." Lowri said, she smirked at him. "Now, you'd best suit up, soldier. You've got a mission."

Steve took a step back from the car as Lowri started it up and reversed out of the parking space. She gave him one last look before driving off and out of the airport parking.

She could see him in the wing mirror and she felt her heart swell.

Lowri was determined to get back to Steve as soon as she could but she knew that the task ahead of her was going to be tough and long.

She left the airport easily and she never looked back, she didn't want to know what was going down behind her.

The little blue car drove faster now that the three men were no longer weighing it down, it sped down the deserted road fast.

At first, Lowri didn't think about how deserted the roads were until a few miles down the road. How were they so empty? She had not seen another car behind her, in front of or passing by her.

After another few miles, Lowri began growing uneasy with the lack of cars on the road but it wasn't until another half an hour had passed until she saw her first glimpse of another vehicle. At first, her heart lightened but then she spied the flashing lights and she heard the siren and her heart sunk.

The sirens were for her, she was literally the only other vehicle in sight for miles.

Lowri pulled over onto the side of the road and waited for the police officer to stop a few metres away from her and get out of the car, she unwound the window and looked up at him. His gun was out of the holster and ready in his hand as he came to a stop beside the blue car.

He spoke in a heavily accented voice and in broken English for her to get out of the car with her palms showing and to leave the keys in the ignition but to leave the engine off.

"_You can speak in German, officer, if that is easier for you._" Lowri said in German as she stepped out of the car with her palms showing.

As Lowri got out of the car, three huge black cars came out of nowhere and circled her and the police car.

"_You are under arrest." _The police officer said in German, he kept the gun in his hand but then, one of the black car's doors opened and a tall man in a black suit got out of the car.

"Miss Lowri Jones, you are to come with me to the Berlin Command Centre, the Joint Terrorism Task Force have some questions for you." The man said clearly.

"Am I under arrest?" Lowri asked in a loud voice. She looked from the German police officer and the man in black. "I think there might have been a communication error. Either I am under arrest for something unnamed, or I am a free woman invited back to the Berlin Command Centre. Which is it, sir?"

"You are under arrest for many things, Miss Jones. You are not a free woman." The man in black said. "You are going to submit to questioning about your recent activities with Steven Rogers, Sam Wilson and James Barnes."

Lowri pressed her lips together and looked at him as she silently assessed her situation. If she used her fire to escape from this scene, she would be a criminal. If she went willingly, she would be treated a little bit more fairly, but she knew the game well and she was tired of fighting.

"Very well." Lowri said slowly. She took a step from the blue car and the German officer looked at her with bewilderment, cocked his weapon and shot her in the arm. Lowri let out a yell of pain and she dropped to her knee, clutching at her arm. The man in black brought out his own weapon and aimed it at the police officer. "Stop!"

"Don't you move an inch!" The man in black yelled, the police officer aimed his weapon at the man in black and cocked the weapon.

"_Stop!_" Lowri said through gritted teeth, she rose to her feet and locked at the police officer. "_I am going with him. He is not your enemy. Do not shoot._"

"What did you say?" The man in black asked.

"I told him not to shoot." Lowri said as the police officer listened and put away his weapon, Lowri moved towards the black car, still gripping her upper arm.

The man in black gripped Lowri's another upper arm, pulled her to the black car with the open door and almost shoved her inside, she fell inwards and landed on the floor. He didn't get in behind her, he slammed the door shut, leaving her in darkness.

She clasped her hand to her arm and waited for the bullet to fall out and for her skin to heal.

By the time the car had finally stopped, the bullet was sitting in her hand.

The car pulled up outside the main building and Lowri was marched from the car doors, through the building, through the halls and corridors and into the main control room.

Men and women lined the corridors silently, as if they were lining a funeral procession.

Inside the main control room, waiting for her was Secretary Ross and Everett Ross, Sharon was loitering in the background, now looking like herself.

As soon as Lowri was almost in the centre of the room and just in front of the two Rosses, the eldest Ross made a simple hand movement and within the next second, her own hands were clamped behind her back and she was handcuffed. She knew these were fireproof.

"Lowri Jones," Secretary Ross began in a loud voice, he stepped forwards with a slight smug grin on his face. "You are under arrest for conspiring and aiding known fugitives and criminals of the United Nations, for stealing government property and evidence and for wrongly impersonating an agent of the United States."

Lowri kept her mouth shut but a smile came to her lips and she glanced down at the floor.

"This is no laughing matter, Miss Jones." Secretary Ross said as soon as he saw her smile.

"Who said I was laughing?" She shot back at him straight away, her face grew serious.

"You aided Captain Rogers and James Barnes escape from our custody and you had the guts to play the innocent." Secretary Ross scowled.

"Pray tell, how did I aid Captain Rogers and James Barnes escape?" Lowri asked, she tilted her head to the side, keeping her eyes on Secretary Ross.

"You left here under the pretence of one of our agents." Everett Ross pointed out. "Why did you leave? Did you meet up with Captain Rogers?"

"What if I simply left because I want to get away from all of this?" Lowri asked, looking around herself. She shook off the arms that gripped her. "I am tired of fighting. I am tired of living a life where I am under scrutiny. I don't want any part of this."

"Well, it's a good thing you're going somewhere secure and secluded where you can think of all of life's woes." Everett Ross said smugly. Lowri threw him a glare but kept her mouth shut.

"For the time being, you are being sent to a secure prison, located somewhere not accessible by your friends." Secretary Ross said, his voice getting louder. "Then, you will be put on trial and we will determine your punishment once this ordeal is over."

Secretary Ross nodded his head at someone to the side of Lowri and a man appeared on either side of her, gripped her arms tightly and then whirled her around.

Lowri was marched back through the huge building and back down where the men and women lining the corridors refused to meet her eye.

Another car was waiting for her, an all-black SUV with darkly tinted windows. The two men who escorted Lowri out seemed to be her new guards, they climbed in after her and sat opposite her with their guns strapped to their chests in clear view.

Their journey was short comparted to the last, they arrived at a small airfield with a small patch for a runway, but they did not guide Lowri towards the small aircraft waiting beside the runway, instead they took her to a Boeing CH-47 Chinook.

As they approached, the Chinook's rotor blades began turning. One of the men shoved a pair of ear defenders on her but she knew they would do barely anything to protect her hearing from the loud engines.

Lowri was strapped into a seat halfway down the Chinook and her guards took their seats, one closest to the cockpit and the other closest to the back end of the helicopter.

As they took off, Lowri's stomach sank.

Her goal of reaching England and ratifying the Accords was shrinking by the second. She was comforted by the thought of Steve; he was on his way to Siberia with a team of friends helping him stop a mad man from awaking something horrible.

* * *

**Thanks all for reading! **

**I am so sorry for the gap... I thought I uploaded this on Friday!**

**Read, Review, Follow & Favourite!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Happy Tuesday, everyone! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap _

_"Lowri Jones," Secretary Ross began in a loud voice, he stepped forwards with a slight smug grin on his face. "You are under arrest for conspiring and aiding known fugitives and criminals of the United Nations, for stealing government property and evidence and for wrongly impersonating an agent of the United States."_

_Lowri kept her mouth shut but a smile came to her lips and she glanced down at the floor._

_"This is no laughing matter, Miss Jones." Secretary Ross said as soon as he saw her smile._

_"Who said I was laughing?" She shot back at him straight away, her face grew serious._

_"You aided Captain Rogers and James Barnes escape from our custody and you had the guts to play the innocent." Secretary Ross scowled._

_"Pray tell, how did I aid Captain Rogers and James Barnes escape?" Lowri asked, she tilted her head to the side, keeping her eyes on Secretary Ross._

_"You left here under the pretence of one of our agents." Everett Ross pointed out. "Why did you leave? Did you meet up with Captain Rogers?"_

_"What if I simply left because I want to get away from all of this?" Lowri asked, looking around herself. She shook off the arms that gripped her. "I am tired of fighting. I am tired of living a life where I am under scrutiny. I don't want any part of this."_

_"Well, it's a good thing you're going somewhere secure and secluded where you can think of all of life's woes." Everett Ross said smugly. Lowri threw him a glare but kept her mouth shut._

_"For the time being, you are being sent to a secure prison, located somewhere not accessible by your friends." Secretary Ross said, his voice getting louder. "Then, you will be put on trial and we will determine your punishment once this ordeal is over."_

_Secretary Ross nodded his head at someone to the side of Lowri and a man appeared on either side of her, gripped her arms tightly and then whirled her around._

_Lowri was marched back through the huge building and back down where the men and women lining the corridors refused to meet her eye._

_Another car was waiting for her, an all-black SUV with darkly tinted windows. The two men who escorted Lowri out seemed to be her new guards, they climbed in after her and sat opposite her with their guns strapped to their chests in clear view._

_Their journey was short comparted to the last, they arrived at a small airfield with a small patch for a runway, but they did not guide Lowri towards the small aircraft waiting beside the runway, instead they took her to a Boeing CH-47 Chinook._

_As they approached, the Chinook's rotor blades began turning. One of the men shoved a pair of ear defenders on her but she knew they would do barely anything to protect her hearing from the loud engines._

_Lowri was strapped into a seat halfway down the Chinook and her guards took their seats, one closest to the cockpit and the other closest to the back end of the helicopter._

_As they took off, Lowri's stomach sank._

_Her goal of reaching England and ratifying the Accords was shrinking by the second. She was comforted by the thought of Steve; he was on his way to Siberia with a team of friends helping him stop a mad man from awaking something horrible._

* * *

Steve was the first to leave the safety of the parking deck, he knew they were all here to help him, but he had to be the one to risk his life first. That's how he works.

He had sent Sam and Bucky together into one of the terminals to scout the place out without being seen, Clint and Wanda stayed in the parking deck as Clint works best from up above. He already had an arrow nocked in his bow.

Scott, the new guy, had the task of waiting patiently, he held onto Steve's shield eagerly. Steve wanted to be one step ahead of Tony.

The helicopter saw just in front of him, a little off to the side of the concrete patch, he knew something was up before he left the parking deck, when that evacuation call was put up, Tony was here.

Steve took up a jog towards the chopper, nevertheless.

Maybe the airport had been evacuated because of a fire or something else, anything other than Tony turning up.

But a small missile came out of nowhere behind Steve and struck the helicopter, it shorted out the helicopter's wiring, making it impossible to fly and useless for the time being.

Tony and Rhodey flew into sight and hovered just in front of Steve, both in their full suits. They lowered themselves to the ground and only Tony opened up the helmet to reveal his face.

"Wow, it's so weird how you run into people at the airport." Tony remarked sarcastically, he turned to Rhodey. "Don't you think it's weird?"

"Definitely weird." Rhodey agreed.

"Hear me out, Tony." Steve began, Tony turned his head to look at Steve sharply. "That doctor, the psychiatrist, he's behind all of this. He's not who he says he is." There was a loud thump to the right of Steve, he looked over quickly to see the Black Panther, T'Challa, straightening up.

"Captain." T'Challa said respectfully.

"Your Highness." Steve replied firmly, he bowed his head towards T'Challa, acknowledging his higher authority.

"Anyway," Tony began, drawing Steve's attention back to him as he walked around Rhodey. "Ross gave me 36 hours to bring you in. That was 24 hours ago, and I'm pretty sure our mutual friend told you."

"If you mean Lowri, then you can say her name." Steve replied. "She told me."

"Can you help a brother out?" Tony asked, as a last show.

"You're after the wrong guy." Steve insisted.

"Your judgement is askew." Tony hissed; he took one step towards Steve. "Your old war buddy killed innocent people yesterday."

"And there are five more super soldiers just like him. I can't let that doctor find them first, Tony, I can't. He'll release them. They can do much more damage." Steve said slowly.

"Steve." The voice calmed Steve momentarily, he whirled to face Nat, surprised to see her in her suit. She had seemed against fighting, much like Lowri. "You know what's about to happen. Do you really wanna punch your way out of this one?"

Steve turned from her and looked back at Tony with a look of determination in his eyes. Tony knew the look well.

"All right, I've run out of patience. Underoos!" Tony yelled out.

Out of nowhere, a small man-like creature, dressed in red and blue shot over Steve's head, shooting something sticky out of his hands that caught onto Steve's shield and yanked it out of his hands. As Steve looked upwards to catch a glance at the strange creature, more of the sticky stuff shot out of the red hands and wrapped around Steve's hand, leaving them trapped but feeling strangely light.

The creature flipped mid-air and landed in a crouch with Steve's shield on his arm, he looked up at everyone. He wore a red and blue suit with a small spider on his chest. His eyes seemingly had black and white goggles on them and he looked small, like a young adult.

"Nice job, kid." Tony said as the kid shifted slightly.

"Thanks." The kid breathed out. "Well, I could have stuck the landing a little better, it's just a new suit. Wait – it's nothing, Mr Stark. It's perfect, thank you!"

"Yeah, we don't really need to start a conversation." Tony said quickly.

"Okay." The kid said, he spotted Steve and saluted him. "Cap. Captain. Big Fan. Spider-Man."

"Yeah, we'll talk about it later." Tony said.

"Hey, everyone." The kid continued, he waved around.

"Good job." Tony hushed him.

"You've been busy." Steve noted as he looked at the kid with amazement. Spider-Man. Was this webbing around Steve's hands?

"And you've been a complete idiot." Tony hissed. "Dragging Clint in, rescuing Wanda from a place she doesn't even want to leave, a safe place. I'm trying – I'm trying to keep you from tearing the Avengers apart."

"You did that when you signed." Steve said almost icily.

Tony glared at Steve for a short moment, deliberating on his next words.

"All right, we're done here. You're gonna turn Barnes over, you're gonna come with us, now, because it's us or a squad of J-SOC guys with no compunction about being impolite." Tony said angrily. Steve looked away from Tony. "Come on."

"_We found it._" Sam's voice came into Steve's ear. "_Their Quinjet is in hangar five, north runway._"

Steve slowed raised his trapped hands above his head and an arrow came shooting out from the parking deck, it tore through the webbing trapping Steve's hands and the arrow bounced off from the floor. Tony whirled to see where the arrow came from and his helmet closed to use Friday to scan the parking deck.

"All right, Lang." Steve said slowly.

"Guys, something is up-" Spider-Man began but he couldn't get any more words out because Scott in his Ant-Man suit grew from the small form to normal-sized, he punched upwards and flipped in the air with Steve's shield in his hands. Spider-Man was flung backwards and Ant-Man turned and headed for Steve.

"Whoa." Rhodey said, he watched Ant-Man's movements. "What the hell was that?"

"I believe this is yours, Captain America." Scott said loudly as he passed the shield over to Steve.

"Oh, great." Tony sighed, he turned back to face the group. "All right, there's two on the parking deck. One of them is Maximoff. I'm gonna grab her."

Tony and Rhodey took off together and hovered momentarily.

"Rhodey, you wanna take Cap?" Tony asked as he flew off.

"Got two more in the terminal." Rhodey reported. "Wilson and Barnes."

"Barnes is mine!" T'Challa roared, as he turned to head towards the terminal, Steve threw his shield at Rhodey, it hit Rhodey's chest and he was pushed back a few feet.

"Hey, Mr Stark, what should I do?" Spider-Man asked.

"_What we discussed._" Tony replied over comms. "_Keep your distance. Web them up._"

Spider-Man threw himself off the little vehicle he crouched on and shot a string of webbing to swing away on. "Okay, copy that."

Steve chased after T'Challa quickly, he threw his shield at T'Challa's back and it knocked T'Challa clean over but he was up on his feet within seconds. Steve tackled him from behind and twisted his body to throw T'Challa behind him and further away from the terminal.

T'Challa got to his feet slowly and faced Steve. Steve couldn't' tell if what emotions were crossing T'Challa's face.

"Move, Captain. I will not ask a second time." T'Challa said in a warning tone.

When Steve refused to move, T'Challa moved quickly, he aimed a high kick at Steve but each kick was blocked by the shield.

Scott faced off with Nat with an unease in his stomach, he didn't like to hurt women, he hated having to fight them.

"Look, I really don't want to hurt you." Scot said with the unease clear in his voice.

"I wouldn't worry about it too much." Nat replied, she gave Scott a little smirk and then she booted him in the thigh.

Quickly, she wrapped an arm around his and she twisted her arm upwards, she went to flip him backwards but he shrunk and flipped himself around her back, still holding her arm.

He pinned her wrist behind her back and she strained against him, but as Ant-Man, he was strong.

Instead of fighting back anymore, she zapped him with one of her Widow's Bites and he went flying off.

Sam and Bucky ran the length of the terminal once they heard the fighting started.

As they ran, a red and blue thing landed on the glass and stuck there just as Sam and Bucky passed by, the red and blue thing threw itself off the glass quickly, swinging up in the air.

"What the hell is that?" Bucky asked as they ran.

"Everyone's got a gimmick now." Sam cussed.

Suddenly, the red and blue thing came crashing through the glass pane, feet first, and went straight for Sam, knocking him to the floor with surprising strength.

Bucky jumped back as the red and blue thing came through the window but as it began to get its footing, Bucky threw a punch with his metal armed aimed at this red and blue thing shaped man, was it a man?

But the strong punch was caught in the man's hand. Bucky was shocked. He looked with bewilderment in his eyes from the man in front of him down to the hand that caught his punch. How can this man be strong enough to hold back his punch?

"You have a metal arm?" This man didn't sound like a man, he sounded like a boy. "That is awesome, dude."

Suddenly, the boy was gone because Sam had take him with him into the air.

"You have the right to remain silent!" The boy yelled out as he tried to hit Sam.

Tony flew into the air, alongside the parking deck until he was just outside where Clint and Wanda were hiding, he aimed with his hand and shot little missiles out.

The missiles hit just behind Clint and Wanda, making the tarmac and bits of concrete fly up into the air, Clint grabbed hold of Wanda and stopped them both, he shielded her with his own body.

The Black Panther's claws scratched against Steve's shield and damaged the red, blue and white paint, and the metal. As Steve lowered the shield for a quick, surprised glance, T'Challa took a few more swipes at Steve but he stepped back with each one and blocked.

Rhodey looked down at the fight and reached for the paddle strapped to his back, it was made out of metal but it delivered a heck of a shock.

"Sorry, Cap, this won't kill you but it ain't gonna tickle either." Rhodey muttered as he prepared himself.

T'Challa pushed Steve away from him hard and as Steve stumbled backwards, Rhodey flew at him with the paddle raised but Steve was quick enough to raise his shield to block. As the paddle of the shield collided, Rhodey was thrown backwards and Steve held his ground under the his shield.

Clint and Wanda slowly straightened up and tried to blink through the dust and debris that surrounded them, they looked up at Tony as he hovered about them with one of his hands aimed at them menacingly.

"Wanda, I think you hurt Vision's feelings." Tony noted slowly.

"You locked me in my room." Wanda said loudly and angrily, each of her words spoke the anger she felt.

"Okay, first things first, that's an exaggeration. Second, I did it to protect you." Tony insisted. Wanda turned her head to the side with an '_are you kidding me_?' look on her face. "Hey, Clint."

"Hey, man." Clint replied slowly, he had three arrows nocked in his bow, ready to go.

"Clearly, retirement doesn't suit you." Tony remarked. "You got tired of shooting golf?"

"Well, I played 18, shot 18. Just can't seem to miss." Clint said, he brought up his bow and shot the tree arrows in the next half-second.

Tony managed to dodge each one from hitting his Iron Man suit, but each blew up in his face. He came forward a few feet and looked down at them again, clearly pissed.

"Oh, well, first time for everything." Tony quipped.

"Made you look." Clint said, shrugging his shoulders.

Wanda's red aura surrounded her as she began flinging cars from the parking deck outside and bringing them crashing down on Tony.

Tony tried to blow up each of the cars that came down on him but Wanda was too quick, or too angry, she piled more and more cars on top of him before running off with Clint beside her.

The boy in red and blue chased after Sam along the length of the terminal and as the boy rested for a short moment on one of the metal supporting beams, Sam shot it out.

The boy caught onto another supporting beam and pulled himself up.

"Oh, God." The boy said, he sensed something coming up behind him very quickly, he turned and ducked at the same time because a huge bit of metal was thrown in his direction.

The boy caught it and flung it back towards Bucky.

"Hey, buddy, I think you lost this!" The boy yelled. Bucky peered up at him and almost lost his head when the metal thing was thrown back.

Sam flew up behind the boy and knocked him off the metal beam, the boy fell but caught himself with his webbing on a nearby beam.

As Sam flew past him, the boy shot out some more webbing and it blocked the left thruster, Sam lost all power to that thruster and he went into a spin, he curled into a ball and crashed through a phone booth.

Sam rolled onto the glass but jumped to his feet but as he landed, the bot shot webbing at him twice and Sam found his arms pinned to his chest, locked against the glass railing.

"Those wings carbon fibre?" The boy asked as he attached himself to one of the huge columns.

"Is this stuff coming out of you?" Sam asked, looking down at his hands in disgust.

"That would explain the rigidity – flexibility ratio, which, I gotta say, that's awesome, man." The boy said eagerly.

"I don't know if you've been in a fight before but there's usually not this much talking." Sam snapped.

"All right, sorry, my bad." The boy said, he cut himself off and then threw himself off the column and towards Bucky, who was rushing towards him.

The boy kicked Bucky in the chest, sending Bucky flying into Sam and they crashed through the glass railing, they fell to the ground, a story below.

As the boy jumped over the gap, he shot more webbing down, trapping Sam's arms to his chest and Bucky's metal arm to the floor.

"Guys, look, I'd love to keep this up, but I've only got one job here today and I gotta impress Mr Stark, so, I'm really sorry-" The boy began but as he raised his hand to either wave goodbye or to shoot more webbing, Redwing was released and on Sam's command, he dropped rope and it locked onto the boy's extended arm, Redwing pulled the boy with it as it barrelled through the window and outside.

Bucky let out an annoyed sigh.

"You couldn't have done that earlier?" Bucky asked, shooting a side glare at Sam. "We just got our assess handed to us by a kid."

"I hate you." Sam replied.

Rhodey flew at Steve, determined to capture him but Steve evaded him and Rhodey crashed to the ground.

As Steve stepped back, T'Challa moved in with a carefully aimed swipe with his sharp claws but Steve blocked the hit and dodged.

"Great." Rhodey said as he got to his feet and held up the paddle, it was snapped in half and useless, he tossed it to the side and looked up.

"Hey, Cap!" Scott called, he was now normal size again and he ran up to Steve, he tossed a small white truck at Steve, he came to a stop beside him as Steve caught it. "Throw it at his."

Scott held a small metal disc with a glowing blue centre.

"Now!" Scott yelled, he threw the small metal disc into the air and Steve hastily threw the little white truck at the metal disc.

In miad-air, the metal disc with a glowing blue centre and the white truck collided and within seconds, the white truck grew and grew until it was normal sized and it spun uncontrollably, heading straight for Nat, Rhodey and T'Challa.

"Oh, come on!" Rhodey yelled as Nat dove to one side and rolled away. T'Challa threw himself to the other side to avoid the truck, leaving Rhodey to take the full brunt.

The truck hit the floor, rolled over and exploded.

"Oh, man." Scott breathed out as the flames settled down. Steve looked horror struck, he was relieved when Rhodey moved. "I thought that was a water truck."

Steve turned to look at him with one of his '_are you being serious_?' look.

"Uh, sorry." Scott mumbled.

Steve turned away from the scene and began running towards hangar five with Scott just behind him.

Tony landed beside Nat, he opened up his helmet and looked from Nat to Rhodey, who was getting to his feet slowly.

"All right, now I'm pissed." Rhodey cussed.

Tony reached down and helped Nat to her feet, she looked tired of all this already.

"Is this part of the plan?" Nat asked, nodding to the burning truck just behind them.

"Well, my plan was to go easy on them." Tony said, he had half a smile on his face. "You wanna switch it up?"

Clint spotted the Quinjet first.

"There's our ride." Clint announced, pointing over to the Quinjet, sitting in hangar five. Steve and Scott met Clint and Wanda, all four running hard across the tarmac.

"Come on!" Steve yelled, urging Sam and Bucky to join them. They were so close to reaching the hangar but then, Vision flew ahead of them and used the Mind Stone to cut a crude line in the tarmac, separating them from the hangar.

Vision floated into their view, his cape flying out behind him. He kept a cool, calculating look on his face.

"Captain Rogers." Vision began, he looked right at Steve with his cold, steely eyes. "I know you believe what you are doing is right, but for the collective good, you must surrender now."

As Vision spoke, Tony flew closer and gently dropped Nat to the floor, he landed beside her as Rhodey dropped T'Challa by Tony and he landed beside him then Spider-Man swung in and landed in a crouch but he straightened up.

"What do we do now, Cap?" Sam asked slowly, his eyes brushed over the line-up in front of them.

Steve looked up and down at the line-up in front of him with a sad feeling in his gut, these people were his friends, he had trained with them, worked with them, lost with them and witnessed extreme events and now, they stood on opposites side of the fight and he wasn't sure if they could come back from this.

"We fight." Steve said in a hard tone. He started off at a walk, determined to help his old friend and to prevent something even worse from happening.

"This is gonna end well." Nat murmured.

Tony started off at a walking pace, he was headed for Steve to meet in the middle, those that had lined up with him, began walking too. That walk slowly turned into a jog.

"They're not stopping." Spider-Man pointed out.

"Neither are we." Tony replied before rising into the air with Rhodey and Vision just behind him, just in front of them, Sam and Wanda rose into the air too as those on the ground left their jog behind and started running.

Tony flew down to meet Steve just as Scott and Nat met again, Rhodey and Sam battled it out in the skies, Bucky and T'Challa finally met, Clint began firing off arrows and Wanda aimed her magic at Spider-Man.

Somehow, in the mix of it all, Clint and Nat began fighting hand to hand combat but it was clear their hearts were not in it. Clint finally caught Nat unawares and tossed her onto her back, he pressed her down onto the ground.

"We're still friends, right?" Nat asked as he looked up at Clint with curiosity in her eyes.

"Depends on how hard you hit me." Clint said with a smirk.

Nat smirked back at him before she managed to wriggle out his grip, she rolled away and she went to aim a kick at his stomach but her foot was caught by a familiar red mist.

Both Nat and Clint turned to see Wanda using her magic, she sent Nat flying into a luggage carrier and she glared at Clint.

"You were pulling your punches." Wanda said, answering Clint's look of question.

* * *

**Thank you to all who read my stories, this one is coming to an end soon... **

**I have to let you know now that there might be a gap between the stories.**

**Read, Review, Follow & Favourite!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Happy Wednesday everyone! I'm off for a long weekend away this weekend so please be aware there may not be an update next week!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap_

_Tony started off at a walking pace, he was headed for Steve to meet in the middle, those that had lined up with him, began walking too. That walk slowly turned into a jog._

_"They're not stopping." Spider-Man pointed out._

_"Neither are we." Tony replied before rising into the air with Rhodey and Vision just behind him, just in front of them, Sam and Wanda rose into the air too as those on the ground left their jog behind and started running._

_Tony flew down to meet Steve just as Scott and Nat met again, Rhodey and Sam battled it out in the skies, Bucky and T'Challa finally met, Clint began firing off arrows and Wanda aimed her magic at Spider-Man._

_Somehow, in the mix of it all, Clint and Nat began fighting hand to hand combat but it was clear their hearts were not in it. Clint finally caught Nat unawares and tossed her onto her back, he pressed her down onto the ground._

_"We're still friends, right?" Nat asked as he looked up at Clint with curiosity in her eyes._

_"Depends on how hard you hit me." Clint said with a smirk._

_Nat smirked back at him before she managed to wriggle out his grip, she rolled away and she went to aim a kick at his stomach but her foot was caught by a familiar red mist._

_Both Nat and Clint turned to see Wanda using her magic, she sent Nat flying into a luggage carrier and she glared at Clint._

_"You were pulling your punches." Wanda said, answering Clint's look of question._

* * *

T'Challa tried his best to hit Bucky down, but Bucky was just as desperate to keep himself a live and they kept each other at a distance, each with a hand at each other's throats.

T'Challa raised his knee and kicked Bucky hard, making him bend over and it gave T'Challa the chance to get closer.

"I didn't kill your father." Bucky breathed out.

"Then why did you run?" T'Challa asked. He pulled Bucky's hand away from his neck slowly, he found it hard to fight against Bucky's strength.

Eventually, he was free and he shoved Bucky back so hard that Bucky fell and when T'Challa went to swipe across Bucky's face with his claws, Wanda caught his hand and threw him away from Bucky.

Spider-Man webbed his way across the small clearing, he hung off the metal tunnel but then Steve threw his shield and it sliced through the webbing, Spider-Man fell onto the walkway running below it and looked down as Steve caught the shield and slid it back into place on his arm.

"That thing does not obey the laws of physics at all." Spider-Man quipped.

"Look, kid, there's a lot going on here that you don't understand." Steve said, looking up at Spider-Man.

"Mr Stark said that you'd say that. Wow." Spider-Man said, he shot some webbing at Steve's shield and then at one of Steve's ankles, he pulled both bits of webbing and Steve fell backwards and landed on his back, Spider-Man swung across the little patch to attack Steve more but Steve met him, Spider-Man kicked Steve in the chest and sent him flying.

Spider-Man swung out of the way and crouched again, watching as Steve rolled backwards, he lost the shield, he hit one of the luggage carriers.

"He also said to go for your legs." Spider-Man added triumphantly as he perched above Steve.

Steve was on his feet quickly, he dashed for his shield but then Spider-Man shot webbing at Steve's hands and yanked them back just as Steve reached for his shield. Steve strained against the webbing but struggled to break free.

Steve glanced back at Spider-Man as he thought out his plan, he threw himself into the air and twisted, he yanked Spider-Man off his perch and Spider-Man went flying.

Sam sped up as he flew away from Tony, who was right behind him. Sam dodged and dived up and down to avoid the blasts being sent by Tony.

"_Clint, can you get him off me?_" Sam asked over the comms.

Clint pulled back his arrow confidently.

"Buckled in, Little Guy?" Clint asked as he looked down the arrow.

"Yeah." Scott answered quickly. "No, I'm good. I'm good, Arrow Guy. Let's go! Let's go."

Clint released the arrow and as it flew through the air, the arrow split into smaller arrows and each section exploded. Scott was thrown through the air and he landed on Tony's extended arm and infiltrated his suit.

Spider-Man shot another web at Steve but Steve ducked the web, it hit his shield and Steve grabbed at it and pulled the shield while Spider-Man was still holding onto the web. Spider-Man fell towards the shield and threw himself away before he met it.

"Stark tell you anything else?" Steve asked when there was a lull. Spider-Man was perched above him again.

"That you're wrong. That you think you're right. That makes you dangerous." Spider-Man said, he threw himself off the walkway and as he swung around one of the supporting legs, he shot some webbing at Steve again but he missed. Steve grabbed hold of the webbing and yanked hard, he threw himself into the air and kicked Spider-Man back into the supporting leg, it buckled under the impact and Steve threw his shield at it, the leg crumpled and the entire walkway collapsed onto Spider-Man, who at the last second, pulled enough strength together to hold it up.

"I guess he had a point." Steve noted. He turned away from Spider-Man, but then he turned back as a thought popped into his head. "You got heart, kid. Where are you from?"

"Queens." Spider-Man panted, he strained against the weight of the walkway, Steve marvelled how strong the kid is.

"Brooklyn." Steve said with a smirk, he turned away and began running.

Clint was fast with his arrows and he was aiming at Tony, but Tony managed to blow up each of the arrows that came his way but within seconds of Scott infiltrating his suit, he was unable to destroy any more arrows.

"Friday?" Tony asked sharply.

"_We have some weapon systems offline_." Friday replied.

"They – what?" Tony splutterd.

"_Oh, you're gonna have to take this into the shop._" Scott said, his voice echoed loudly in Tony's suit, making Tony almost whirl around in surprise.

"Who's speaking?" Tony spat.

"_It's your conscience. We don't talk a lot these days._" Scott replied.

"_Deploying fire suppression systems._" Friday said.

"_Uh-oh. Oh, boy! Whoa!_" Scott yelled and then he was gone from Tony's suit.

Steve caught up with Bucky and they paused behind one of the airport's vehicles. They looked at each other and then out at the chaos happening around them.

"We gotta go. We gotta get out of here. That guy is probably in Siberia by now." Bucky said, pressing his back against a crate filled with luggage.

Steve glanced up above them as Tony and Rhodey flew overhead, chasing Sam.

"We gotta draw out the flyers. Otherwise, we'll get chased or shot down. I'll take Vision, you get tot eh jet." Steve said, he looked at Bucky and he looked at him.

"_No, you get to the jet_!" Sam yelled as he ducked a shot from Tony, "_Both of you! The rest of us aren't getting out here._"

"_As much as I'd hate to admit it, if we're gonna win this one, some of us might have to lose it._" Clint added.

Steve let out a sigh and turned his head away from the chaos. This was the last thing he wanted. He never wanted to have to fight his friends. He dropped his head and racked his brain for a way out of this. Could he let his friends take the fall for him?

Clint had come out of retirement for him and right into danger, Wanda was at that point in her life where she was playing with her powers, learning the full extent, Scott, he was a rookie brought in by Sam, he had a life outside of this.

"All right, Sam, what's the play?" Steve asked after looking back up at Bucky and sharing a look.

"_We need a diversion. Something big._" Sam said loudly.

"_I got something kinda big. But I can't hold it for very long. On my signal, run like hell. And if I tear myself in half… don't come back for me!_" Scott panted.

"He's gonna tear himself in half?" Bucky asked in disbelief.

"_I do it all the time._" Scott replied. "_I mean once, in a lab, then I passed out._"

Steve looked at Bucky as Scott spoke.

"_I'm the boss, I'm the boss. I'm the boss. I'm the boss!_" Scott said more to himself than the others, within the next second, the teeny-tiny man suddenly grew into a giant, looming over everyone and everything, a booming laugh came out of his mouth.

"I guess that's the signal." Steve said slowly, he and Bucky shared another look before they bolted to their feet and began running towards hangar five.

"Way to go, Tic-Tac!" Sam yelled as he flew by.

The giant Ant-Man now stood above them all, he caught Rhodey as he had grown and now waved him about like a prize.

"Give me back my Rhodey!" Tony yelled as he flew up to meet Scott.

There was a short scuffle with Tony, Sam, Rhodey and Scott, it ended up with Rhodey being thrown away from Scott, he went flying across the sky and was headed right for a bus but Spider-Man caught him and Rhodey flew back.

Scott kicked another bus at T'Challa, who braced himself for impact but Vision appeared in front of him and used the Mind Stone to split the bus in half.

T'Challa turned from the broken bus and began sprinting after Steve and Bucky, who were running towards hangar five.

"_Okay, anybody on our side hiding any shocking and fantastic abilities they'd like to disclose, I'm open to suggestions._" Tony said.

Sam was being chased by Tony, but he brought his wings back in and killed the engine for a second, he spun in the air, then reopened his wings and at the last second, ducked and dove down on Tony, leaving Redwing to hit Tony in the face and the net trap that Tony released to catch Sam, went AWOL.

T'Challa jumped onto a crate and tried to follow Steve and Bucky but Scott stood in his way.

"You wanna get to them? You gotta go through me." Scott said threateningly. He kicked out and destroyed the crates that T'Challa stood on, T'Challa threw himself to the side but as he landed, Scott reached for him but Rhodey began firing at him so he pulled back.

Before T'Challa could turn to follow Steve and Bucky into the hangar, arrows began flying at him from his side, he spun to see Clint firing more off. T'Challa ducked and dodged each of the arrows but only two caught him off guard but he caught them with his hands and they blew up in his face.

T'Challa dropped the arrows and drew out his claws, Clint smiled to himself when he knew T'Challa was getting angry.

"We haven't met yet." Clint said, he flicked how bow into a staff in a second and grinned at T'Challa. "I'm Clint."

"I don't care." T'Challa said coldly.

He pounced first and they fought hand-to-hand combat as Scot and Rhodey fought. Wanda was using her magic to help Scott, her magic pinned Rhodey to the undercarriage, freeing up Scott.

Vision came over quickly and he concentrated all of his power in the centre of his body to make him into a solid creature and he flew into Scott, sending Scott stumbling backwards.

Clint managed to get T'Challa into a headlock using his staff but T'Challa used his claws on the staff and split it in half, he quickly elbowed Clint in the face, spun and kicked him hard away from him.

Vision reduced his matter to literally nothing and flew right through Scott's chest and came out the other side, intent on stopping Steve and Bucky, who were now nearing the hangar fast.

"Something just flew in me!" Scott yelled out in a panic voice.

Quickly, Vision used the Mind Stone and a sort of laser came out, it cut the Air Traffic Control Tower in half and the top half fell to block the entrance to hangar five.

But Wanda fell to her knees on the tarmac about twenty feet from the entrance and strained with the pressure as she held the collapsed building up with her magic.

Rhodey paused in mid-air and spotted Wanda, he lifted his arm and used a sonic blast at her which shot a sonic wave at Wanda and she lost control. She clutched at her head, clearly in pain.

Steve and Bucky barely made it through, it rubble began falling again as they slipped underneath, the dust began settling as they straightened up and they looked around the hangar.

The Quinjet sat at the centre but Nat stood in from of them, blocking them from the Quinjet.

"You're not gonna stop?" Nat asked slowly.

"You know I can't." Steve panted.

"I'm gonna regret this." Nat said with a sigh, she raised her right arm and aimed as Steve pleaded with her silently.

Nat ignored his silent begging and she shot one of her widow's bite but instead of the bite hitting him or Bucky, it went behind them and they heard a grunt.

T'Challa fell to his knees, straining as his muscles contracted and convulsed but he was up on his feet quickly. Nat shot another widows bite at him but he kept falling down and getting back up.

Steve took this as a good thing, he darted past Nat with Bucky just behind him, she was helping them. They slipped into the jet and stared it up quickly.

Spider-Man ran along a metal walkway and jumped as Scott swept at Spider-Man's feet with his hand.

"Hey guys, you ever see that really old movie, _Empire Strikes Back_?" Spider-Man asked as he shot a web from his wrist and launched himself off the metal walkway.

"_Jesus, Tony, how old is this guy_?" Rhodey asked.

"_I don't know. I didn't carbon-date him. He's on the young side._" Tony replied.

Spider-Man swung underneath the plane's wing and shot a web at Scott Lang.

"You know that part," Spider-Man began, he swung up around Scott Lang's legs. "Where they're on the snow planet, with the walking thingies?"

Rhodey picked up an empty car and hit Scott in the back of the legs.

"Maybe the kid is onto something." Tony said.

"High now, Tony, go high!" Rhodey ordered.

Both Rhodey and Tony moved together to hit Scott in the face at the same time and as Spider-Man wrapped his webbing around Scott's legs, Scott stumbled backwards and fell hard.

"Yes!" Spider-Man cheered as Scott went tumbled over, "That was awesome!" Scott's hand flailed helplessly in the air and hit Spider-Man, catching him unaware so he lost his grip on his webbing and he flew through the air and crashed into some crates as Scott fell.

Scott hit his head hard on the floor and he groaned as he pressed one of the buttons on his suit and he shrank back to normal size. He pushed back his helmet and breathed out heavily.

"Does anyone have any orange slices?" He asked no one.

Spider-Man lay on the floor, facedown and unmoving as Tony landed beside him, he opened up his helmet and fell to his knees beside the younger boy.

"Kid, you alright?" Tony asked, he reached for the boy's shoulder but Spider-Man reacted badly, he spun and tried to hit out at Tony, he began freaking out.

"Hey!" Spider-Man yelled.

"Whoa!" Tony tried to stop him from hitting the suit, he'll only hurt himself. "Same side. Guess who? Hi, it's me."

Spider-Man slowly leant back on the floor, breathing out heavily and obviously in pain.

"Hey, man." He breathed.

"Yeah." Tony said, he looked up and down and made his judgement.

"That was scary." Spider-Man breathed out.

"Yeah, it was. You're done." Tony ordered, the boy was dazed, he must have taken a hard hit on his head.

"What?" Spider-Man asked, he tried to sit up. "I'm good. I'm fine."

"You did a good job, kid. Stay down." Tony commanded.

"No, it's good. I'm good. I gotta get him back." Spider-Man said quickly.

"You're going home or I'll call Aunt May!" Tony ordered, he pushed Spider-Man back down on the floor but he tried to get up again.

"Dude." Spider-Man protested.

"You're done!" Tony commanded, he got up and flew into the air as Spider-Man tried to get up but the pain was too much and he sank back down on the floor.

Steve swiftly brought the jet into the air almost as easily as he had seen Lowry do it so many times, he was thankful she was safe and away from this fight. She was wise to stay away from it all.

As the jet lifted, the wheels were being slowly drawn into the undercarriage, T'Challa shook off the last of Nat's Widow's Bites and threw himself onto the wheels, he grabbed as much as he could but the sleek design of the undercarriage took the wheels up and he had nothing to hold onto, T'Challa dropped to the ground as Steve flew the jet through the gap.

T'Challa looked at Nat as the jet got away, "I said I'd help you find him, not catch him. There's a difference." Nat insisted.

Wanda lay on the floor, feeling the effects of the sonic wave wrack her body and Vision landed behind her, swiftly taking her in his arms almost lovingly. Wanda moved in his arms and twisted her body so she could look up at him.

"I'm sorry." Vision said slowly.

"Me too." Wanda whispered back.

"It is as I said." Vision said knowingly, "Catastrophe."

The jet steadily climbed into the air at a quick rate, but pretty soon, Rhodey and Tony had joined a chase to catch the jet. Steve pushed the throttle a little more but the suits have strong firepower. They can match the speed of the jet, maybe overtake it.

Sam joined the tail of the chase, pressing his limbs together to make him more streamline.

"_Vison, I got a bandit on my six._" Rhodey instructed.

Sam released one of the shots he had and it burst mid-air just in front of Rhodey, flashing with bright colours and made him lose power.

"_Vision! You copy? Target his thruster, turn him into a glider._" Rhodey instructed more urgently. Vision looked up from Wanda and narrowed his eyes at the chase.

He aimed and used the Mind Stone to shoot a beam but Sam saw and tucked his wings away so he dropped underneath the beam, he opened up his wings just in time to see the beam hit Rhodey in the chest, destroying his power source.

Rhodey fell, and fast.

"_Rhodey!_" Tony yelled as he began the long descent but no matter how hard he pushed his thrusters, he seemed to be too far behind. Sam dropped and dove downwards but he too was in the same position.

When Rhodey twisted and turned and fell fast, Tony knew it was serious.

"_Rhodes!_" he yelled just before Rhodey crashed into the ground with a loud thud.

Tony landed just seconds later and he fell to his knees beside an unmoving Rhodey and ripped off the face mask, there was blood coming from Rhodey's nose and his eyes were closed. Tony held his hand over Rhodey's chest shakily.

"Read vitals." He instructed.

"_Heartbeat detected. Emergency medical is on its way._" Friday replied.

Sam landed a few feet from Tony and Rhodey and looked down with horror. "I'm sorry."

Tony didn't look up at him, his anger was present. He raised his hand and shot Sam in the chest with one of the flashes and it knocked Sam over.

Vision came over and Tony looked up at him, showing his anger.

Bucky strapped himself into the back seat of the jet, he had not wanted to sit up front with Steve, not yet.

He spent the first ten minutes or so of the flight in silent thought and Steve let him.

"What's gonna happen to your friends?" Bucky asked, finally breaking the silence.

Steve looked down at the controls and let out a sigh, he hadn't meant to but it slipped out. He had a slight idea of what was going to happen to Clint, Scott, Wanda and maybe even Nat. If Secretary Ross had threatened Lowri with prison for just leaving the base, what would he to do a group of super heroes who had destroyed an airport in a fist fight?

"Whatever happens to them, we will deal with it." Steve replied after a few short seconds. There was a sinking feeling in his stomach.

"I don't know if I'm worth all of this, Steve." Bucky said slowly.

Steve breathed in deeply and slowly, then looked back at Bucky.

"What you did all those years… it wasn't you. You didn't have a choice." Steve said.

"I know." Bucky replied, he glanced down at the floor. "But I did it."

Steve turned from Bucky and faced forward again, this situation is so dire and serious and no one knew what the outcome could be.

The fight had always been so easy in the past, the right and wrong were so clearly defined but now, the line was blurred and no one knew the answer to which is which.

"Your girl, what was her name?" Bucky asked, he paused and closed his eyes to think. "Elizabeth. I remember teasing you about her."

"In London." Steve noted, he glanced back at Bucky and smiled. "I walked her back from the pub."

"And I was meant to be on bed rest." Bucky said, he smiled to himself. "She was about to tell me off, I think."

"She did have that look in her eye." Steve added.

"She really does make you happy, doesn't she?" Bucky asked slowly. "I saw you two today… in that warehouse, in the car, in the airport. Did you give her that necklace you had made? It was from your old house key, wasn't it?"

Steve almost grinned at what Bucky was remembering, this was all personal stuff.

"Yeah, it was and yeah, I did." Steve said with a smile. "She's worn it every day since I gave it to her. And she does make me happy. She's a remarkable woman."

Bucky was remembering things that Hydra had not known about, personal things like Steve and Lowri's relationship in the 1940's.

This gave him hope.

* * *

**Thanks all for reading!**

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	15. Chapter 15

**Apologies for the delay between updating... I've been trying to write the ending to this fic! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap_

_Bucky strapped himself into the back seat of the jet, he had not wanted to sit up front with Steve, not yet._

_He spent the first ten minutes or so of the flight in silent thought and Steve let him._

_"What's gonna happen to your friends?" Bucky asked, finally breaking the silence._

_Steve looked down at the controls and let out a sigh, he hadn't meant to but it slipped out. He had a slight idea of what was going to happen to Clint, Scott, Wanda and maybe even Nat. If Secretary Ross had threatened Lowri with prison for just leaving the base, what would he to do a group of super heroes who had destroyed an airport in a fist fight?_

_"Whatever happens to them, we will deal with it." Steve replied after a few short seconds. There was a sinking feeling in his stomach._

_"I don't know if I'm worth all of this, Steve." Bucky said slowly._

_Steve breathed in deeply and slowly, then looked back at Bucky._

_"What you did all those years… it wasn't you. You didn't have a choice." Steve said._

_"I know." Bucky replied, he glanced down at the floor. "But I did it."_

_Steve turned from Bucky and faced forward again, this situation is so dire and serious and no one knew what the outcome could be._

_The fight had always been so easy in the past, the right and wrong were so clearly defined but now, the line was blurred and no one knew the answer to which is which._

_"Your girl, what was her name?" Bucky asked, he paused and closed his eyes to think. "Elizabeth. I remember teasing you about her."_

_"In London." Steve noted, he glanced back at Bucky and smiled. "I walked her back from the pub."_

_"And I was meant to be on bed rest." Bucky said, he smiled to himself. "She was about to tell me off, I think."_

_"She did have that look in her eye." Steve added._

_"She really does make you happy, doesn't she?" Bucky asked slowly. "I saw you two today… in that warehouse, in the car, in the airport. Did you give her that necklace you had made? It was from your old house key, wasn't it?"_

_Steve almost grinned at what Bucky was remembering, this was all personal stuff._

_"Yeah, it was and yeah, I did." Steve said with a smile. "She's worn it every day since I gave it to her. And she does make me happy. She's a remarkable woman."_

_Bucky was remembering things that Hydra had not known about, personal things like Steve and Lowri's relationship in the 1940's._

_This gave him hope._

* * *

The chopper flew steadily for what felt like hours. The noise that was coming from the engines drowned out the noise coming from the choppy sea below and the wind roaring around them outside.

With no prior warning, the chopper stopped moving forward and hovered in mid-air for a few seconds before the chopper lowered towards the rough sea below them, Lowri's stomach sunk when she realised where they were heading.

She knew where they were heading, the Raft, the inescapable, high security prison situated in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, completely isolated.

The Raft opened up below them to welcome the chopper and Lowri wished for this not to be happening. She had been in the Raft before, but only as a guest and not as a prisoner. She knew they were not treated right.

She had not liked the prison when it was first established, she did not like the way it's run, she did not like the prison in general.

The cells were small, tiny mostly, they followed the circular build of the Raft and so there was generally an open space in front of all the cells, the cells either had glass walls or thick railings, so they overlooked each other's cells, there were individual bathrooms and these were the only privacy the inmates got.

She wasn't sure of the food situation, or the exercise regime set for the inmates but she knew there was not a lot of room in the Raft, the majority of the structure is cells, with the top level being two offices, a staff room and a huge storage room.

The chopper finally landed on the landing platform just inside the Raft, but almost immediately the drop down opened and Lowri was pushed to her feet by the guards in the chopper with her, they pushed her out and down the ramp, into the blustery wind, the chopper took off and left them there.

As the chopper took off, the floor they were stood on slowly descended into the Raft.

The roof closed overhead as the chopper flew clear of them, the wind stopped ripping around them and the noise wasn't so deafening but a cold seeped inside, she could feel and hear the Raft slowly submerging back under the sea, Lowri looked around herself, trying not to make eye contact with her guards.

The room had not changed since the last time she had been here, the storage containers holding the basic rations for the inmates were lining the circular walls, stacked to almost room height.

There was a door that lead off to the two offices and the staff room that was only a floor beneath them, there was only one other door and that was leading away from this room and towards the service elevator that served to take the inmates down and bring them back up.

Lowri knew that in this situation, she would not be invited down the blue stairs to visit the staff room or the two offices, she would be taken into the service elevator and taken down into a cell.

One of those doors opened to reveal someone who Lowri didn't know, he gestured to the other man standing with Lowri and he pulled her towards the open door.

Once inside, the door leading back to the huge room was closed and locked with a heavy lock that seemed to echo when shut.

Lowri was silent as she was walked through the narrow corridors, they passed by some of the workers of the Raft and they barely met her eyes.

In no time, Lowri was descending deeper into the Raft with her new guard in a service lift. Both of them were armed and alert. The lift moved steadily downwards and in twenty seconds, the lift had stopped and the doors opened into another corridor.

This one went in a circular route, every few feet there was a heavy door and finally, they came to a stop outside one of the doors and one of the guards opened the heavy door, the lock had to be twisted manually and it was clear that it was tough to open.

The door finally opened and Lowri was met with a brightly lit room, with an unmade bed with bedding stacked at the end, one pillow and two sets of blue jumpsuits and a pair of white daps. There was a desk with a chair and another door, leading to the tiny bathroom. Opposite her, was the glass wall that overlooked the other cells.

"Get in." One of the guards ordered, he pushed her inside and then stepped in after her to unlock the handcuffs around her wrists.

"As soon as you can, dress in one of the jumpsuits and leave your civilian clothing at the door. Please note that this room has been treated with fireproof chemicals and if you do try to escape, all of your exit routes will be cut off promptly. Meals come three times a day, lights turn off when it is time to sleep and lights turn on when it's time to wake. With good behaviour, luxuries such as books and TV time can be earned." The other man said, listing off by memory the welcome speech they had to deliver.

"When will my trial be?" Lowri asked as she stepped inside and shook her hands out. "And will I have access to a phone at any time to cover legal actions?"

"No. And you will find out when the time comes." The man replied. His friend stepped out and the door was slammed shut.

Lowri had no chance to feel alone, her cell buddies all peered at their windows at their new guest. All of them were male and when they saw Lowri, they began hollering at her.

She took up one of the jumpsuits and disappeared into her little bathroom and the shouts and pleas followed her.

Lowri had not been searched upon her arrival and she still had the phone in her possession. She was torn between hiding it and giving it up.

If she kept it and they found out, she would be punished. They would treat her like a criminal.

If she gave the phone up and behaved, the likely hood of getting punished is lowered.

She knew she wouldn't be here for long. Those charges they had against her were false and easily overturned, would it harm her to keep the phone?

Quickly, she checked the phone to see that it had drained of battery, it was no use keeping it now.

Lowri put the phone on top of the pile of clothes by the door and she sat down on the bed.

Everett Ross had been right, this place was good to think of all of life's woes.

Lowri began thinking first was of how Steve should already been in Siberia, hopefully stopping that man from wakening five more super soldiers and wrecking havoc on the world.

Then, as time wore on her mind began wandering to other things on her mind, like that incident in Lagos in May, Peggy's funeral, Lowri dying and then learning the news of the miscarriage.

Lowri was thankful for when the lights went out and the other inmates across from her finally shut up and went to sleep, their catcalls and pleas were finally subdued and she could rest.

It was the next day when someone came to visit her and it wasn't anyone she liked.

"How are you enjoying your thinking time, Miss Jones?" Secretary Ross asked as he came to a stop outside of her cell. He stood with the glass between them as if he was scared she would go for him.

"Very much." Lowri replied shortly, she didn't stand when he approached. She would not give him the respect of standing when spoken to. "I would enjoy it much more if I did not have such bad mouthed neighbours."

"Come on! Don't be like that!" One of them called out, he also called out another obscene comment.

"Sit down." Lowri said, she stared behind Secretary Ross and glared at the man who shouted at her, he was tall and filled out to the max with muscles, he looked tough but she knew she could take him down.

"Well, if you behave nicely in the next few days, I might consider moving you to be with your friends." Secretary Ross said, "You are on the lowest level of the prison, with the lowest of the low."

"My friends?" Lowri asked.

"Yes. Wilson, Maximoff, Barton, Lang. They're here." Secretary Ross said, he smiled smugly at her. "We brought them in the late hours of last night. They, your boyfriend and his pals fought to get free from Tony Stark, Romanoff, Colonel Rhodes, the Vision and some kid, oh, and King T'Challa was there but he followed your boyfriend to Siberia. So did Tony."

"This all happened while I was in here?" Lowri asked quietly. She was glad she was sitting down.

"Yes. They destroyed the airport you escaped from." Secretary Ross said, he looked at Lowri. "I admire you, Miss Jones, you're holding yourself together very well, despite your current circumstances."

"That's because I know I will be out very soon." Lowri said firmly. She clutched the end of the bed in her hands tightly to keep herself steady.

"How did you work that one out?" Secretary Ross asked, a hint of a smile came to his face.

"Because your trumped up charges against me are false and you know that." Lowri said, this time she rose her to feet with her hands clenched. "Conspiring and aiding known fugitives and criminals of the United Nations? Do you have any proof whatsoever of me conspiring? Any written witness reports? Any actual sightings of me going to Steve and telling him how to get away from you? And the last two charges are bogus. Do you have any visuals of me leaving the building? Any visuals of me going to wherever Steve's and Sam's kit was located. Any actual visuals of me impersonating someone?"

"We are gathering evidence as we speak." Secretary Ross said carefully.

"Good luck trying to find something that isn't there." Lowri said, she came to a stop in front of the glass window. "You're chasing a cold lead just because you want to get rid of me. But guess what, Secretary Ross, I have been around since way before you were born and you can bet on your golf clubs that I'll be around way after you're gone too."

"Is that a threat, Miss Jones?" Secretary Ross asked.

"No, Secretary Ross, that is a statement, a fact." Lowri said.

Secretary Ross narrowed his eyes and walked away quickly as if annoyed.

Lowri sat back down, ignoring the men around her. She had not provoked Ross but she had annoyed him. What she said was true, the charges against her were false.

She felt hollow knowing that her friends were upstairs. They were meant to be in Siberia. At least she knew that Steve and Bucky had made it. But damn, the Avengers were practically split in half, fighting against each other. How had she not seen it before?

For days, Lowri was left alone with her new friendly neighbours who kept shouting obscenities at her at every chance they got and a deep chill had set in, being at the bottom of the Raft meant that they were further into the sea where it was colder. Even with Lowri's abilities, she still felt the cold and she often shivered at night.

About 13 days into her stay at the Raft, the door to her cell opened, making Lowri jump. She had not heard that sound since the day she arrived. She had been lying on her bed with her hands on her stomach looking up at the ceiling of her cell, wondering what her friends were talking about if they were all located on the same level.

Three guards stormed into her cell and two grabbed her while the other one aimed his weapon at her. They shouted in her face, shook her and dug their fingers into her arms and sides painfully.

She was forced out into the narrow corridor, jostled against the hard metal walls and forced to walk back to the service lift, she was taken up a few levels where the air was a bit warmer.

Lowri was marched into one of their labs, so far, she had not put up much of a fight but when she saw the metal chair with straps attached, then she began to fight back. She didn't use her fire, but she used her muscles and strength.

The two guards holding Lowri forced her down into the chair while the other strapped her in. Lowri felt fear clutch at her heart, she did not want a repeat of what happened when she was last in the Triskellion.

A blindfold was tied over her eyes and she looked around frantically, she tried to look under the blindfold but she saw nothing. She felt the panic take hold.

Lowri felt the knife cut at her exposed wrist, she felt what she thought was a cotton swab in her mouth, she felt the sting of a needle as it was inserted into the crook of her elbow and she certainly heard the sound of scissors cutting something.

There was no torture, which Lowri was glad of but when she was put back in her cell, she went to the bathroom to check over the damage done to her body and the first thing she saw was her hair, almost hacked to pieces. Instead of her hair reaching down past her back, it came to her shoulders and was jagged all along the edges.

She had fresh cuts on her wrists and needle marks in the crook of elbow, where they had taken blood.

The cuts on her wrists healed up quickly but her hair was taking a while to grow back.

On the 32nd day of Lowri being in the Raft, she went to the bathroom and when she came back out, she had two visitors waiting for her on the other side of the glass window.

Secretary Ross stood dead centre and stared in with no emotion but when Lowri stepped out, he glared at her with what could have been all the hatred in his body. And beside him stood Tony Stark, with a huge grin on his face but that fell as soon as he saw her.

Granted, food had been rationed considerably after her arrival and she had lost a lot of weight, but nowhere near as bad as it was a few years ago just after the Hydra incident.

"What have you done to her?" Tony demanded as he turned to face Secretary Ross.

"We investigated all possibilities." Secretary Ross answered, "Lowri Jones is an abnormal creature, we just want to understand."

"I have the answers you need. When Lowri was almost killed after Hydra got their hands on her, Banner and I did some testing, if you'd asked, you might have received." Tony snapped. "Now get her out of that jumpsuit."

"We have nothing for her." Secretary Ross said, earning himself a scoff from Tony.

"Wow. Nothing for a veteran of this country? Disgusting." Tony said, he looked back at Lowri. "I've got a change of clothes for you in the chopper."

The door behind Lowri opened and this time, only one guard stood there, he let her pass and walked behind her as they headed for the service lift.

The ride up to the top felt ten times longer than the original ride down. Finally, Lowri stepped out and rushed straight into Tony's arms. She could have cried.

"I'm so happy to see you." She began, she took a deep breath in. "Are Sam, Wanda and the others free? Have all the charges against me been dropped? What's happening?"

"Whoa, one thing at a time, Ri." Tony said, he took a step back and detangled himself from her. "You get into the chopper now and change quickly while I chat with Secretary Ross."

Lowri disappeared into the chopper without being asked again and she spotted the small rucksack, one peer in told her that the contents were for her. Quickly, she shredded the blue jumpsuit and white daps and she dressed in a loose grey shirt, dark blues jeans, trainers and a sandy brown hoody.

She pulled the hood up over her hair as Tony got into the chopper with a disgruntled look on his face.

"He is not coming in here with. He can find his own way back." Tony remarked as he sat down and strapped himself in. "Friday, take us home."

"_Yes, boss._" Friday replied.

The chopper's engines began working and the rotors began spinning and they lifted into the air as soon as the doors above them opened.

"Is this really happening?" Lowri asked as she looked over at Tony.

"Hell yeah. Legal jailbreak." Tony smirked. He looked at her carefully. "Now, question me."

"Are all those false charges against me dropped?" Lowri asked first, as the chopper rose.

"Yes." Tony replied. "None of them held up in court at all since there was no evidence and your friend, Sharon Carter, admitted that she gave you the Photo Veil and made contact with whoever it was in store who gave out the kit. She had a slap on the wrist."

"Are Sam, Wanda and Clint still in the Raft or are they out?" Lowri asked, she clutched at the seat beneath her almost nervously.

"They got out about two weeks ago." Tony said, he looked down at his feet. "Rogers broke them out, but, Clint and that new guy, the giant, uh, Scott, they took a deal with the government to remain on house arrest for three years because of their families. The rest, they're on the run."

Lowri looked down at her feet with wide eyes. They were now out of the Raft and flying steadily away from it, her heart was fluttering excitedly.

Steve had broken the others out of the Raft, but not her. She felt her heart breaking and she wanted to cry all over again but she kept herself strong.

He could have not known she was in there, right at the bottom with the lowest of the low, he thought she was in England.

"What happened to your hair?" Tony asked as he leant forward. "And why are you so skinny?"

"They ration meals when someone on your floor messes up, which was a lot for my floor." Lowri replied, she bit down on her lip. "And they tested on me."

"So they cut your hair off?" Tony asked sharply.

"Yes. They took saliva samples, skin samples, blood samples and hair." Lowri replied.

"Bastard." Tony cussed.

"Tony." Lowri said when Tony swore, he looked at her and smiled a small smile. "Did you and Steve really fight in an airport?"

"Yes." Tony said, he crossed his arms over his chest and leant back. "And I know that you knew who killed Mom and Dad."

Lowri's heart sunk. She looked up at him, feeling herself go pale.

"I am so sorry for not telling you, Tony." Lowri said quickly. "I didn't want to believe it myself, I didn't know how to put it into words, I still don't but Bucky is not the same as he was back in 1991. He was under Hydra's control, he was unable to make his own choices, you know how bad Hydra's effect can be on a person."

"I can. I saw it first hand with you." Tony said, he looked down at his hands. "It hurts that I had to find out from a video. There's a video, of Barnes putting a bullet into Dad's head and choking Mom. It's hard to understand that you and Rogers could keep something like this from me."

"We found out when S. H. I. E. L. D. fell, Steve and I followed a trail to New Jersey, to Camp Lehigh where S. H. I. E. L. D. started out, and we had this flash drive that Fury gave us and we put it into this computer that turned out to be the brain of Arnim Zola, an old Hydra scientist, one of the Red Skull's top scientists and he told us all about how Hydra had snuck in when Operation Paper Clip went ahead." Lowri quickly explained.

Tony kept his eyes on his hands.

"I think your father found out about Hydra still being around, he called me up when I was in Wales and I promised I would be home soon but as soon as I landed, I had the message from your butler, Mr Jarvis, telling me that your parents were dead. All I saw from the computer was an image of an assassin, and then the front cover page of the crash." Lowri continued, "It never clicked until after I recovered that it was the Winter Soldier who had pulled the trigger, I didn't know the circumstances of their death, only that it involved a car."

"Well, I forgive you." Tony said, he looked up at her. "You went through a really tough time after Hydra and even if I didn't forgive you, I couldn't leave you in that prison."

"I don't want your forgiveness, Tony, I want you to never forgive me. I should have told you, you're not a child that needs to be wrapped in a cotton ball, you deserved to know about your parents. So, shun me, ignore me for as long as you want. There's another thing I should be saying sorry for." Lowri said, Tony had looked at her in alarm when Lowri said that she didn't want his forgiveness. "I was named as your God Mother, but I never stepped up the way I should have. I made sure you were well cared for, I wanted to stay in the shadows. You last saw me before your parents passed was when you were five years old. Mr Jarvis told me that it was best that I stayed away from you and I agreed."

"I had to hide in the shadows to protect you. And I am sorry for it. I had to, Tony." Lowri said.

"Will you quit saying sorry?" Tony asked quickly. "I just pulled you out of the top security prison, you should be revelling in your new found freedom."

"But is it really freedom? I don't know what sort of world this is now." Lowri said.

"You were in there for a month." Tony stated.

"Thirty-two days." Lowri corrected him. "And a lot can change in that time period, and am I right in guessing that it has? What happened in that airport? Ross came to visit me early on and said that my friends were in the Raft too, he said that the airport was destroyed and that Steve and the others fought against you?"

"The airport… it didn't survive. That new guy, Scott Lang, he can shrink and grow abnormally large, he did a lot of damage. So did Vision, Sam, my guy, Parker." Tony said, he looked down at his hands again. "Steve and I fought, it was bad."

"Will you forgive him as you forgave me?" Lowri asked slowly. Tony kept his eyes on his hands and he shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't know." Tony said, he looked at Lowri again. "We've had our little arguments before but this is something different, something much bigger. He chose Barnes over me."

Lowri pressed her lips together and looked at Tony.

"Think of it this way, Tony," Lowri began, bringing his attention to her. "When a good friend of yours, who you have only known for a few years and your friend who was your best friend as a child didn't get a long, who would be the person you'd go to?"

Tony was silent but he kept his eyes on Lowri.

"Steve thought that Bucky set off those bombs that killed me, as soon as he heard that, he was even more determined to bring him in to justice himself." Lowri said, "He felt it was his need, Bucky is a lost soul, confused."

"Barnes wasn't the one who set off the bombs." Tony said in a low voice. "It was a guy called Zemo, he was in Sokovia when Ultron happened, he lost his wife and kid. He was on some sort of revenge mission against us. He wanted to tear us apart and he succeeded. He's the one who dressed up like Barnes and planted the bombs, he's the one who impersonated that doctor and made Barnes go into Winter Soldier mode, he's the one who cut all electrical power to the command centre. He was behind all of it."

"When did you find out this?" Lowri asked in a quiet voice.

"In Siberia." Tony replied. "He's the one who showed me that clip of Barnes killing Mom and Dad."

"Tony… I hope you got him." Lowri said quietly.

"Well, Steve and I almost let him get away." Tony admitted, he shrugged his shoulders, "I was too busy trying to kill Barnes and Steve was too busy trying to save him. T'Challa got him in the end, he was trying to commit suicide now that his mission was done."

"Of course, he killed King T'Chaka, he killed a King." Lowri said. She leant back in her seat and looked out of the window. "I guess I was right, I'm coming out into a world that is changed."

Tony smirked playfully at her.

"Yeah, well, you've got this thing where you tend me be right. _Sometimes._" Tony quipped.

Within two hours, the chopper landed on top of the new Avengers HQ and Lowri and Tony descended into the building.

* * *

**Thanks all for reading!**

**Please note that updates may vary now. I'm trying to fit in as much writing as I can but with Halloween, Bonfire Night and Christmas coming up soon, I'm so busy working that I don't have a lot of free time!**

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	16. Chapter 16

**First of all, I want to say that I am sorry for the huge gap between updates... I have been busy! Also, secondly, this might be the last update for a while... maybe until New Year. I am so sorry! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters that may be used or any Marvel storylines or arcs.**

**Claimer: I only own the character Elizabeth Jones (Lowri Jones and any other names she uses) and her story past, present and future.**

* * *

_Recap _

_"Will you quit saying sorry?" Tony asked quickly. "I just pulled you out of the top security prison, you should be revelling in your new found freedom."_

_"But is it really freedom? I don't know what sort of world this is now." Lowri said._

_"You were in there for a month." Tony stated._

_"Thirty-two days." Lowri corrected him. "And a lot can change in that time period, and am I right in guessing that it has? What happened in that airport? Ross came to visit me early on and said that my friends were in the Raft too, he said that the airport was destroyed and that Steve and the others fought against you?"_

_"The airport… it didn't survive. That new guy, Scott Lang, he can shrink and grow abnormally large, he did a lot of damage. So did Vision, Sam, my guy, Parker." Tony said, he looked down at his hands again. "Steve and I fought, it was bad."_

_"Will you forgive him as you forgave me?" Lowri asked slowly. Tony kept his eyes on his hands and he shrugged his shoulders._

_"I don't know." Tony said, he looked at Lowri again. "We've had our little arguments before but this is something different, something much bigger. He chose Barnes over me."_

_Lowri pressed her lips together and looked at Tony._

_"Think of it this way, Tony," Lowri began, bringing his attention to her. "When a good friend of yours, who you have only known for a few years and your friend who was your best friend as a child didn't get a long, who would be the person you'd go to?"_

_Tony was silent but he kept his eyes on Lowri._

_"Steve thought that Bucky set off those bombs that killed me, as soon as he heard that, he was even more determined to bring him in to justice himself." Lowri said, "He felt it was his need, Bucky is a lost soul, confused."_

_"Barnes wasn't the one who set off the bombs." Tony said in a low voice. "It was a guy called Zemo, he was in Sokovia when Ultron happened, he lost his wife and kid. He was on some sort of revenge mission against us. He wanted to tear us apart and he succeeded. He's the one who dressed up like Barnes and planted the bombs, he's the one who impersonated that doctor and made Barnes go into Winter Soldier mode, he's the one who cut all electrical power to the command centre. He was behind all of it."_

_"When did you find out this?" Lowri asked in a quiet voice._

_"In Siberia." Tony replied. "He's the one who showed me that clip of Barnes killing Mom and Dad."_

_"Tony… I hope you got him." Lowri said quietly._

_"Well, Steve and I almost let him get away." Tony admitted, he shrugged his shoulders, "I was too busy trying to kill Barnes and Steve was too busy trying to save him. T'Challa got him in the end, he was trying to commit suicide now that his mission was done."_

_"Of course, he killed King T'Chaka, he killed a King." Lowri said. She leant back in her seat and looked out of the window. "I guess I was right, I'm coming out into a world that is changed."_

_Tony smirked playfully at her._

_"Yeah, well, you've got this thing where you tend me be right. Sometimes." Tony quipped._

_Within two hours, the chopper landed on top of the new Avengers HQ and Lowri and Tony descended into the building._

* * *

The first thing Lowri saw was Rhodey, standing with metal bits strapped to his legs and hips and they were supporting him. He saw her horrified look and nodded his head slowly. She had not known he was injured.

"Dangers to the workplace." Rhodey said before hugging Lowri.

"What happened?" Lowri asked quietly.

"I fell." Rhodey answered, he stepped back and Lowri looked around the rest of the room, Nat was stood there quietly and so was Vision. "But I'll live."

Half of the team had split during this bust up and everyone was nursing wounds, physically or emotionally.

Lowri excused herself to go to her room and to have a lie down soon after her arrival, she felt overcome with emotions, how would she cope in this new world now?

Nat followed Lowri up with a pained look on her face.

Lowri stepped into her set of rooms first, she had a feeling of nostalgia nibble at her, though she had not been in this room for more than a month, it felt like way longer than that, and so much had happened too, so much had changed.

"What's wrong, Ri?" Nat asked as she stepped into the living room, where Lowri stood at the window, overlooking the training grounds.

"Nothing." Lowri replied, she crossed her arms over her chest and turned to look at Nat. "Why's that?"

"Because since Vienna, you haven't been yourself." Nat said slowly.

"I was put in a maximum security prison for a month for fake crimes, Nat." Lowri pointed out. "Prisoners aren't treated fairly in that place."

"You changed before you were arrested." Nat pointed out. "Tell me, what happed while you were in that hospital in Vienna?"

Lowri looked down at the floor and pressed her lips together.

"You weren't yourself then and you're not yourself now. You've changed, almost drastically." Nat added.

"There's a lot of things going on." Lowri said slowly. "And there still is, none of us are the same."

"That's because our team has been split down the middle with the pieces scattered. My best friend is on house arrest and the guy I trusted with my life is AWOL." Nat replied, she breathed in deeply. "There, I told you my story but you won't tell me yours."

Lowri looked at Nat and then sighed, she crossed to the couch and sat down heavily with her head in her hands.

"You know you can tell me, Ri." Nat added softly. She crossed to sit next to Lowri.

"I was pregnant." Lowri said quietly. Nat placed a hand on Lowri's shoulder and Lowri looked up at Nat. "I was pregnant and when I held back that second explosion, so heroically, and I died, I miscarried without knowing that I was pregnant or that it was a miscarriage."

"Oh, Lowri." Nat said slowly.

"They took my bloods and ran some tests, that's when they discovered abnormal levels of hormones associated with pregnancy in my blood." Lowri said in a tight voice. "They told me that because of my accelerated cells, I miscarried without realising and there was nothing that could be done."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Nat asked. "I could have helped you."

"I didn't know I was pregnant until after the UN, I should have picked up the signs but I was oblivious. And, how could I tell you? The first person I should have told is Steve." Lowri replied.

"I'm the first person you told?" Nat asked slowly. "Why didn't you tell Steve when you saw him when you escaped?"

"How do I even slip something like that into a conversation?" Lowri asked. "How do I tell Steve that the one time we had sex, I fell pregnant. Me, the declared barren."

Nat's eyes widened.

"Crap. But, Steve is enhanced to his physical… I guess anything is possible for him." Nat said slowly.

"I coped with it by myself." Lowri said as Nat shifted in her seat slightly. "I had too. There was so much happening that I just kinda forgot to grieve for the baby that could have been mine."

Nat was silent for a few seconds but then she straightened up.

"Let's have a girls' night." Nat suggested, she got to her feet quickly and she looked down at Lowri with a smile one her face. "You've got food here, right?"

"Out of date food." Lowri said as Nat walked into the kitchen, she began pulling open the cupboard doors in search of food.

"I'll be right back." Nat said, she walked out of the room and closed the door behind her.

She was back in a few minutes with armfuls of food stolen from the kitchen. She dumped the snacks on the table in front of the couch and then busied herself with setting the film up and the comfortable blankets.

Lowri was distracted for the rest of the night but Lowri knew it couldn't last.

The next few months were hard to navigate as the Avengers were no more, with half the team scattered around the world, the other half, Lowri, Nat, Tony, Rhodey and Vision were left to pick up the pieces from the government and the rest of the world.

Tony went back into retirement but he popped his head in every so often to check up on things. Lowri took a backseat when it came to the decision making and leading of the team, she felt exhausted but she stayed with the team, only because she knew that if she left, she would never have a normal life out with everyone else.

Rhodey took on more of the leadership role of what was left of the Avengers, Vision became more distant until he made contact with Wanda on the off chance.

They began seeing each other on and off and it seemed to be working for them but they could steal a few weekends together every few months.

Lowri wished she could leave the Avengers Facility but she knew that if she did, she would definitely be arrested once more on more serious charges that wouldn't disappear in a month. She's under constant surveillance from the government and she knew that she couldn't just up and leave like Nat did after a few months.

Steve never tried to reach out for Lowri, she did try her own search for him but in his recent years he had become good at hiding and he was excelling at it now.

She was able to take one of the Quinjets and fly to a few locations associated with Steve, Sam, Wanda and Nat, but only after seeking approval from Rhodey and someone in the government but she never stayed there for too long.

Lowri had the constant feeling of loneliness hanging over her, she didn't have a good view on life at the moment and she barely lived. She had no extra hobbies and she spent most of her time in her room, alone.

She grew restless after a few months, her body had fully recovered and she took to training again, she searched the news for sightings of any of her friends and found nothing, but her mind went back to her days at S. H. I. E. L. D.

Lowri sat down in her room with an old radio, one of her old tricks that she knew Nat knew and used, and she reached out.

Within days, Nat replied to her and agreed to meet her. Lowri felt like something was finally coming together again. She and Nat agreed to meet a few miles away from the Avengers HQ in a few days' time.

Lowri set off on foot and hiked the distance early in the morning on the day she was meeting Nat.

She was only at the meeting spot for ten minutes before Nat appeared, she looked happier and healthier than when Lowri had last seen her. She quickly embraced Nat and then stepped back.

"How are you?" Lowri asked as she stepped back.

"I'm good, living on the edge." Nat said, she smiled at Lowri. "The usual way of life. How are you?"

"Bored without you there." Lowri replied. She tried to smile. "I miss you. I miss everyone."

"Do you miss Steve?" Nat asked slowly. Lowri looked at her sharply. "He misses you. He wants you to join us."

"I would love to join you guys." Lowri said slowly, she let out a sigh. "But I'm on probation, I'm being watched, _constantly_. It's lucky I'm out here alone with you."

"I know. But you love having a busy life and I guarantee you that you'd be much happier with us than with them. No one will be looking over your shoulder at what you're typing, you won't need to take a step back from anything, you can be yourself." Nat said, she urged Lowri to think about herself for once.

In reality, Lowri was ready to say yes and give up her life to live on the run with the man she loves and their friends.

She was so, so, so ready for it but the one thing holding her back was leaving Tony and her other friends, Tony knew her situation well, despite his personality, he had been a big help in her recovery. Could she up and leave him in an instant?

"I'll come with you." Lowri said quietly. Nat threw her arms around Lowri tightly.

"I knew you'd make the right choice." Nat said, she then linked arms with Lowri and pulled her along. "I haven't told Steve anything about what you told me."

Lowri looked at Nat appreciatively. That was something Lowri had to tell Steve face to face and alone.

"Thank you." Lowri said softly. "To be honest, I'm still not sure how I would even tell him."

"Tell who what?" Lowri looked up sharply when she heard Steve's voice. Nat had met Lowri so close to the Quinjet. Steve was stood just off the ramp and Lowri could see Sam inside with Wanda.

"Uh, Tony." Lowri said quickly, she shared a look with Nat and then looked back at Steve. "I'm not sure how to tell him I'm joining you guys."

"Maybe you shouldn't tell him." Steve said slowly, he looked at Lowri with soft eyes. The last time they had seen each other, Steve had almost been unable to keep his hands from her, or his lips. Now, they stood like strangers. Does he know about her time in the Raft?

"Maybe I shouldn't." Lowri said slowly. She followed him up onto the ramp and up into the plane where Wanda and Sam were waiting inside with ready smiles on their faces to welcome Lowri.

* * *

**Thanks all for reading, I hope that it won't be long until the next installment is up of this story.**

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